| dc.description.abstract | Abstract:
The purpose of this paper is to justify the use of the Gini coefficient and two close relatives for
summarizing the basic information of inequality in distributions of income. To this end we employ a
specific transformation of the Lorenz curve, the scaled conditional mean curve, rather than the
Lorenz curve as the basic formal representation of inequality in distributions of income. The scaled
conditional mean curve is shown to possess several attractive properties as an alternative
interpretation of the information content of the Lorenz curve and furthermore proves to yield essential
information on polarization in the population. The paper also provides asymptotic distribution results
for the empirical scaled conditional mean curve and the related family of empirical measures of
inequality.
Keywords: The scaled conditional mean curve, measures of inequality, the Gini coefficient, the
Bonferroni coefficient, measures of social welfare, principles of transfer sensitivity, estimation,
asymptotic distributions. | no_NO |
