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In the United States, the rise in income inequality and downward intergenerational social mobility since the 1970s represent twin problems facing community and economic development today. This paper proposes a Structure of Labor theory to apply at the local and regional level to address these development challenges. The objective is to provide a simple local approach to development that maximizes upward economic mobility and enables individuals and communities to achieve their development goals in the 21st century development landscape of the United States. The proposed theory fuses free-enterprise principles with state-planned dirigiste efforts to maximize the best of both theoretical perspectives. After reviewing pertinent literature and articulating the Structure of Labor theory, the latter sections of the paper explicate its implications for community and economic development practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neoliberalism is a political-economic philosophy that consists of two claims: one economic and the other political. The economic claim is: that free market laissez faire economies are the best way to organize economic activity as they generate efficient outcomes that maximize well-being. The political claim is: that free market economic arrangements promote individual liberty. This paper argues both claims are problematic. The evidence from the forty-year experiment that began in 1980 shows neo liberalism has undercut shared prosperity and unleashed illiberal forces that threaten liberty. The paper distinguishes between the first political turn which saw the establishment of neoliberal political hegemony, and the second one toward proto-fascism that we are now experiencing. The second turn is being driven by a collection of factors that have created a demand for proto-fascism and weakened the defenses against alt-right ideas. Those factors include socio-economic disembedding, institutional destruction and political disembedding, increased economic inequality that tilts political power, an alteration in attitudes to government and governance, transformation of economic identity, and a cultural transformation that celebrates sociopathic egotism. The Third Way's capture of center-left politics means liberal elites occupy the political place that should be held by true opponents of neoliberalism. Those liberal elites obstruct the politics needed to reverse the deep causes of the drift to proto-fascism. Ironically, that makes those elites a real danger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the economic policies adopted by the Indian government under different policy regimes, provides a political economy perspective of economic growth in the country during 1950–2020 and examines the inclusiveness of the rapid economic growth in recent decades. The growth performance of the economy improved as the economy moved from inward-looking policy regime to the regimes of pro-business and pro-market policies. India's political economy was supportive of the changes in policy regime. After growing at a sluggish rate during the first three decades after 1950–1951, the gross domestic product (GDP) growth accelerated significantly after the pro-business reforms in the 1980s, and there was further acceleration after the pro-market reforms since 1991–1992. It has, however, slowed down in recent years. Nevertheless, it has not been inclusive, as the benefits of growth have not reached all sections of the population and all regions of the country equally. On the contrary, disparities in income across regions and inequalities in income, wealth and consumption among individuals have exacerbated, and the problems of unemployment and poverty have been persisting in the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) on domestic terrorism. Using a cross-national, time-series analysis of 114 countries from 1991–2017, and employing structural equation modeling to test a number of mediating factors, we find that the impact of FDI on domestic terrorism depends on the host state's level of economic development. For host countries at higher-income levels, FDI boosts economic development and global integration promoting prosperity, increasing counterterrorism resources, and reducing the economic grievances that foster terrorism. Conversely, for lower-income host countries, increased FDI fuels higher domestic terrorism, as it intensifies clashes between traditional and modern elements within society, raises economic discrimination, heightens perceptions of economic insecurity, and subsequently leads to grievances directed against the state. Our results indicate a curvilinear relationship between FDI inflows and domestic terrorism, suggesting that FDI produces a double-edged sword between promoting economic development and increasing domestic terrorism in host states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper develops a model in which the relation between the real exchange rate and the real wage, in the context of conflictive income distribution, is made explicit. It is noted that the central bank tries to regulate the distributive relation exchange rate and real wages through the changes in the interest rate. The theoretical point is that, under certain circumstances, a relatively depreciated or high level of the real exchange rate might reduce real wages and have a negative impact on economic growth. The paper also provides some evidence for the Argentine case, and suggests that the Classical Developmentalist elasticity pessimism seems, in the case of Argentina, to be validated. Also, the use of the exchange rate as an instrument to bolster redistribution away from the working class, and to promote investment and growth is also not born in the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the statistical data of 280 prefectural-level cities in China from 2011 to 2020, this paper empirically tests the relationship between digital finance and residents' income in a linear and nonlinear model based on the G-J model theory, respectively. The study aims to discuss and analyze the impact of digital finance development on income distribution in the context of the current situation of digital finance development in China and further explore how to make digital finance better regulate the income distribution of residents. The innovation of this paper is to use two nonlinear methods to verify the Kuznets effect and threshold characteristics of digital financial development affecting the income distribution of residents based on linear analysis and explore the relationship between n digital economic development the current income gap more comprehensively. The study shows a Kuznets effect of digital finance development on the income distribution of Chinese residents. Thus, most regions in China have not yet crossed the inflection point of the bell-shaped curve, and the income gap within areas will continue to increase with the development of digital finance. By constructing a threshold model, it is found that the positive effect of digital finance on income disparity may initially increase with the increase of regional economic level. Still, when the regional economic development reaches a higher stage, the effect will tend to fall back. As a result, the negative impact of digital finance development on residents' income distribution will be significantly reduced at that time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relationship between climate change and income inequality, recognizing that the economic impacts of climate change are not uniform across different levels of income within and across countries. Using methods from the existing literature on climate and economic growth, we analyze the economic impact of rising temperatures by within-country income decile. Our findings suggest that climate change disproportionately affects the poorer segments of the population within countries, even after accounting for a country's ability to adapt to climate impacts, while richer households suffer lower damages. In the reference scenario without additional climate action (3.6°C warming), we estimate that climate impacts could lead to an increase in the Gini index by up to six percentage points, notably in Sub-Saharan Africa. We project impacts to 2100 through the RICE50+ model and estimate the income elasticity of impacts within countries. Our estimates indicate that climate change damages are regressive, with an income elasticity of damages of 0.6 under our preferred specification. On the other hand, climate benefits are approximately distribution-neutral or slightly progressive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main path of development credit funds in rural poverty alleviation in Y province is crucial. This paper studies the rural poverty alleviation work in extreme poverty areas in Yunnan and puts forward targeted and instructive policy suggestions for specific difficult areas. Research the relationship between credit resource allocation and rural poverty alleviation. The existing research is mainly based on the relationship between financial development and economic growth, income growth, income distribution, and, on the surface, the relationship between the scale of financial development and the efficiency of financial development and other indicators. The purpose is to put forward targeted measures and suggestions on the basis of theoretical research and model analysis to help the Yunnan banking industry support poverty alleviation. The results of the study show that there is a causal relationship between agriculture-related loans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The negative linkage between income inequality and social trust is widely acknowledged. Despite this consensus, it remains unclear at what level of aggregation income inequality matters most to the cultivation of social trust. In a comprehensive review, Wilkinson and Pickett (Annu Rev Sociol 35:493–511, 2009) speculate that income inequality is most important when measured at the societal level, whereas for lower units of aggregation economic development becomes a stronger predictor. Merging regional inequality data for 216 regions in 22 European countries (2010–2014) to the European Social Survey, this paper is the first to examine this claim for social trust. The results demonstrate that in non-Eastern European countries most of the variation in social trust is accounted for by differences in inequality between countries rather than differences in inequality within countries. For economic development, the opposite is true. Within-country differences in economic development relate significantly to social trust, while between-country differences do not. I conclude that social trust is more strongly affected by the stratification of society as a whole than by income inequalities within smaller units of aggregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper empirically tests the relationship between digital finance and income distribution of residents in 280 cities in China from 2011 to 2020 using linear and nonlinear models, respectively. Based on the Greenwood-Jovanovic (G-J) theory of output grow, the empirical study shows that there is a Kuznets effect of digital finance development on the income distribution of Chinese residents, and most regions have not yet crossed the inflection point of the bell-shaped curve, and the income gap within regions will continue to increase with the development of digital finance. Furthermore, the threshold model test shows that the positive effect of digital finance on the income disparity of residents may initially increase with the increase of regional economic level. However, when the regional economic development reaches a higher stage, the negative effect of digital finance development on the income distribution of residents will be significantly reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a new service system of finance, inclusive finance emphasizes on better meeting the needs of people's livelihood at a reasonable and affordable cost. Inclusive finance can effectively solve the problems existing in the process of high-quality economic development by promoting regional coordinated development and narrowing the income gap between urban and rural areas. Firstly, this paper constructs the inclusive financial development level measurement index system and high-quality economic development measurement index system, uses these two index systems to measure the development of inclusive finance and high-quality economy of the Yangtze River Delta in China from 2010 to 2019, and then empirically analyzes the impact of Inclusive Finance on high-quality economic development in the Yangtze River Delta by using the panel threshold model. The results show that the inclusive financial development level and high-quality economic development level of cities under the jurisdiction of the Yangtze River Delta have increased steadily year by year, but the development level differentiation among different cities is obvious. Inclusive finance has a threshold effect on high-quality economic development. When the inclusive finance index is lower than 0.358, inclusive finance is not conducive to high-quality economic development. When the inclusive financial development index is between 0.358 and 0.522, inclusive finance promotes high-quality economic development, but the effect is weak. When the inclusive financial development index is greater than 0.522, inclusive finance can significantly promote high-quality economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the behavior of the Economic Fitness indicator as a measure of the international competitiveness of Latin American economies, as well as an indicator of their relationship with per capita income gaps and the Human Development Index (HDI). Positive correlations were found between per capita income gaps and the stagnation of the international competitiveness of Latin American economies, as well as between human development levels and the productive structure, suggesting a causal relationship between human development and competitiveness. This paper also finds that the Economic Fitness indicator fluctuates significantly when estimated using exports in domestic value-added, suggesting that the original estimate may over- or underestimate competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intergenerational transmission of wealth is a long-standing component of society. With the current accelerated economic development, the forms of wealth transmission and the ways in which it affects individuals' lives have gradually become more complicated. In this article, we explore the economic performance and basic flow patterns of intergenerational transmission. We first discuss the key factors of personal and family wealth accumulation. We then consider how social performance affects the phenomenon of intergenerational transmission and the macro-channels of the current transmission mode. Finally, while intergenerational transmission is widespread in society, its importance has not attracted widespread attention from socio- economic researchers and this paper makes suggestions for further study of the phenomena. Our main conclusion is that in current society, intergenerational transmission both directly and indirectly influences the lives of members of society in multiple ways, such as through income, employment and education. If a basic understanding of the phenomenon of intergenerational transmission can be established, it will assist people in making relevant decisions more scientifically and allow them to have a fairer life experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper integrates low-carbon development into the context of economic resilience, thus proposing "Low-carbon Economic Resilience" (LER). We establish an analysis framework to analyze LER based on regional interactions. The framework indicates that regions achieve LER by transferring the development burden to others, which will result in inter-regional trade inequality. An empirical analysis focused on inter-regional trade in cities of China is carried out to illustrate this framework. We calculate the degree of economic resilience and low-carbon development in cities of China. Then we trace the environmental-economic benefits embodied in virtual built-up land flow in regions. The characteristics of virtual built-up land flow exert an impact on the spatial distribution of regional economic resilience to a certain extent. The results show that, in China, many cities achieved only economic resilience or low-carbon development, while a few cities were able to achieve LER. The latter imported built-up land with high carbon emissions or low economic benefits from others, while developing "high-quality" built-up land themselves, which was reflected in the benefits per hectare of built-up land. The differences in environmental-economic benefits from inter-regional trade cause trade inequality, and major cities are the main beneficiaries, which contributes to their achievement of LER. • Low-carbon economic resilience is proposed. • Quantifying the environmental-economic benefits of inter-regional trade of cities in China. • Dividing built-up land into 4 categories to match MRIO model. • Analyzing low-carbon economic resilience based on regional interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), countries should prioritize reducing income inequality while ensuring people have access to affordable, reliable, and modern energy. This study clearly illustrates the nexus between three aspects of energy poverty and income inequality, focusing on 77 countries from 2000 to 2019. The empirical results indicate that access to electricity contributes to reduce income inequality, while access to clean fuels and renewable energy development can increase income inequality. The results of heterogeneity analysis further reveal that at the early stage of economic development, access to clean fuels and electricity can significantly reduce income. In contrast, the development of renewable energy worsens income inequality. However, renewable energy development becomes the primary factor in reducing income inequality as economic development progresses. Furthermore, the mechanism analysis shows that energy poverty can reduce income inequality by improving public health and educational attainment. Finally, this study provides valuable policy recommendations and scientific arguments for reducing income inequality, accelerating energy access, and achieving the SDGs. • This paper uses renewable energy development as an indicator for measuring energy poverty • The direct impact and potential impact mechanisms of energy poverty on income inequality is explored. • The heterogeneous impact of energy poverty on income inequality is studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political institutions are an essential component to explain income variation. Brazilian municipalities are characterized by a great contrast in the colonization process and its impacts on the current income level and distribution, and other development aspects. This study analyzes the spatial heterogeneity of the relationship between institutional quality and the municipalities' economic development. We use a spatial moving window method applied to weighted regressions—Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR). We find evidence that good institutions increase income and other variables related to economic development. In addition, the institutional quality influence on economic development measures is distinct across the Brazilian regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the dynamic relationship between ICT, income inequality and economic growth in sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries is examined during the period 2004–2014. Three ICT and three income inequality indicators were used to examine this linkage. The ICT indicators used include internet penetration, mobile phone penetration and fixed broadband subscription, while the income inequality indicators include the Gini coefficient, the Atkinson index and the Palma ratio. Using the Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) estimation technique, the study found that, on the whole, an increase in ICT development unconditionally leads to an increase in economic growth in the countries under study. The study also found that the threshold level of income inequality, which should not be exceeded in order for the positive impact of ICT on economic growth to be sustained, depends on the ICT proxy used and the income inequality indicator. Specifically, the study found that for ICT to have a sustained positive impact on economic growth, i) the Gini coefficient in the mobile penetration specification should not exceed 0.520; ii) the Gini coefficient and Atkinson index in the internet penetration specification should not exceed 0.531 and 0.560, respectively; and iii) the Gini coefficient, Atkinson index and Palma ratio in the fixed broadband subscriptions should not exceed 0.551, 0.633 and 4.664, respectively. Policy implications are discussed. • The paper examines the dynamic relationship between ICT, income inequality and economic growth in sub-Saharan African (SSA). • Three ICT and three income inequality indicators were used. • The ICT indicators used include internet penetration, mobile phone penetration and fixed broadband subscription, while the income inequality indicators include the Gini coefficient, the Atkinson index and the Palma ratio. • The study used the Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) to examine this linkage. • The results show that, on the whole, an increase in ICT development unconditionally leads to an increase in economic growth in the countries under study. • The results also show threshold levels of income inequality, which should not be exceeded by the studied countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]