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Is global inequality getting better or worse? A critique of the World Bank’s convergence narrative

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  • Jason Hickel

Abstract

The dominant narrative of global income inequality is one of convergence. Recent high-profile publications by Branko Milanovic and the World Bank claim that the global Gini coefficient has declined since 1988, and that inter-country inequality has declined since 1960. But the convergence narrative relies on a misleading presentation of the data. It obscures the fact that convergence is driven mostly by China; it fails to acknowledge rising absolute inequality; and it ignores divergence between geopolitical regions. This paper suggests alternative measures that bring geopolitics back in by looking at the gap between the core and periphery of the world system. From this perspective, global inequality has tripled since 1960.

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  • Jason Hickel, 2017. "Is global inequality getting better or worse? A critique of the World Bank’s convergence narrative," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(10), pages 2208-2222, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:ctwqxx:v:38:y:2017:i:10:p:2208-2222
    DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2017.1333414
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    Cited by:

    1. Vic Benuyenah, 2024. "Economies as 'Makers' or 'Users': Rectifying the Polysemic Quandary with a Dualist Taxonomy," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(1), pages 3100-3121, March.
    2. Michael Quinlan, 2020. "Five challenges to humanity: Learning from pattern/repeat failures in past disasters?," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 31(3), pages 444-466, September.
    3. Shyamsundar, Priya & Sauls, Laura Aileen & Cheek, Jennifer Zavaleta & Sullivan-Wiley, Kira & Erbaugh, J.T. & Krishnapriya, P.P., 2021. "Global forces of change: Implications for forest-poverty dynamics," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    4. Clarke, Thomas & Jarvis, Walter & Gholamshahi, Soheyla, 2019. "The impact of corporate governance on compounding inequality: Maximising shareholder value and inflating executive pay," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    5. Ragnheiður Bogadóttir, 2020. "The Social Metabolism of Quiet Sustainability in the Faroe Islands," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-18, January.
    6. Monica Laura Zlati & Romeo Victor Ionescu & Valentin Marian Antohi, 2022. "Modelling the Vulnerability of Financial Accounting Systems during Global Challenges: A Comparative Analysis," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-21, April.
    7. Ossi I. Ollinaho & V. P. J. Arponen, 2020. "Incomegetting and Environmental Degradation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-18, May.
    8. Milanovic, Branko, 2024. "The three eras of global inequality, 1820–2020 with the focus on the past thirty years," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).

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