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FLORIDA'S RISING TIDE: INCOME INEQUALITY EFFECTS BY COUNTY
Title
FLORIDA'S RISING TIDE: INCOME INEQUALITY EFFECTS BY COUNTY.
Creator
Johnson, Alyson E, Jewett, Aubrey, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Income inequality in Florida is higher than in many states and has been getting worse over time. Inequality has been argued as responsible for a wide-ranging array of economic and social problems, including suppression of lower- and middle-income growth, social fragmentation and separatism, urban sprawl, poor health and mental illnesses, violence, and shortened life expectancy. What explains variance in Florida county income inequality as measured by the GINI coefficient? Bivariate and...
Show moreIncome inequality in Florida is higher than in many states and has been getting worse over time. Inequality has been argued as responsible for a wide-ranging array of economic and social problems, including suppression of lower- and middle-income growth, social fragmentation and separatism, urban sprawl, poor health and mental illnesses, violence, and shortened life expectancy. What explains variance in Florida county income inequality as measured by the GINI coefficient? Bivariate and multivariate weighted least square regressions are conducted for the years 2000 and 2016, and for the change between 2000 and 2016. Three variables achieve statistical significance in all three multivariate models: poverty rate and population density have a positive effect as does educational attainment (although that variable is negative in the 2000 model). Income per capita has a statistically significant positive relationship with inequality in the 2000 model and in the change model. Unemployment rate is statistically significant in the 2016 model and in the change model but has a positive association with the GINI index in the former and a negative association in the latter. Several variables were statistically significant in just one model: cost-burdened housing with a positive relationship to inequality and percentage of minorities with a negative relationship in 2016; and county tax rate with a positive association with inequality in the change model. Conclusions are drawn regarding policy that might be implemented to mitigate worsening inequality in the Sunshine State.
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Date Issued
2019
Identifier
CFH2000521, ucf:45672
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000521
INEQUALITY AS A DETERMINANT OF GROWTH IN A PANEL OF HIGH INCOME COUNTRIES
Title
INEQUALITY AS A DETERMINANT OF GROWTH IN A PANEL OF HIGH INCOME COUNTRIES.
Creator
McGuire, Joshua, Pennington, Robert, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
This paper empirically examines the effect of income inequality on economic growth in a sample of 69 high income economies. It uses an improved inequality dataset developed by the World Institute for Development Economics Research and panel estimation techniques in an ordinary least squares regression. The results provide robust empirical evidence that rising levels of income inequality have adverse effects on growth in high income countries and indicate that, on average, a one standard...
Show moreThis paper empirically examines the effect of income inequality on economic growth in a sample of 69 high income economies. It uses an improved inequality dataset developed by the World Institute for Development Economics Research and panel estimation techniques in an ordinary least squares regression. The results provide robust empirical evidence that rising levels of income inequality have adverse effects on growth in high income countries and indicate that, on average, a one standard deviation increase in income inequality will decrease growth by 67.91%. Results from the regression also suggest increases in human capital and international openness, decreases in the government consumption ratio, and more favorable terms of trade promote growth while higher initial per capita GDP and higher levels of investment retard growth.
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Date Issued
2012
Identifier
CFH0004166, ucf:44835
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004166
THE CONTEXTUAL IMPACT OF INCOME INEQUALITY ON SOCIAL CAPITAL AND ADVERSE SOCIAL OUTCOMES
Title
THE CONTEXTUAL IMPACT OF INCOME INEQUALITY ON SOCIAL CAPITAL AND ADVERSE SOCIAL OUTCOMES.
Creator
Schiff, Jeannie, Wan, Thomas, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
An interdisciplinary approach to policy and governance recognizes that many social welfare problems are interrelated, and policy-makers have long recognized a need to address the root causes of these problems. There is much evidence that income inequality is one of these root causes but research suggesting the effect of income inequality is mediated by social capital has complicated the relationship, as have theories of causality that take different approaches. This study takes an ecological...
Show moreAn interdisciplinary approach to policy and governance recognizes that many social welfare problems are interrelated, and policy-makers have long recognized a need to address the root causes of these problems. There is much evidence that income inequality is one of these root causes but research suggesting the effect of income inequality is mediated by social capital has complicated the relationship, as have theories of causality that take different approaches. This study takes an ecological approach to these issues to test the relationship between income inequality, social capital and selected adverse outcomes proposed by the relative income hypothesis. The relative income hypothesis posits that the impact of income inequality on adverse outcomes is mediated by social capital. The study used a retrospective cross-sectional design to analyze county-level data for the year 2000 with a structural equation model composed of three constructs: income inequality, modeled by four common measures; a social capital construct based on a model developed by Rupasingha, Goetz and Freshwater (2006); and an adverse outcomes construct designed as a parsimonious measure of social outcomes in four public affairs disciplinary areas. The test of the path presumed by the relative income hypothesis revealed both a direct effect of income inequality and indirect effect of inequality through social capital. However, the direct effect of income inequality on outcomes was significantly larger than the indirect effect, indicating the relationship is moderated, rather than mediated, by social capital. Since the impact of social capital on the selected adverse outcomes was relatively small, and the final model failed to achieve statistical significance, the relative income hypothesis that income inequality exerts its primary effect on outcomes through social capital was rejected.
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Date Issued
2010
Identifier
CFE0003205, ucf:48574
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003205
Economic Inequality and Democratic Representative Institutions Across Western Industrialized Democracies
Title
Economic Inequality and Democratic Representative Institutions Across Western Industrialized Democracies.
Creator
Plungis, Donald, Kinsey, Barbara, Wilson, Bruce, Hamann, Kerstin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
This study examines the effects of political representation on economic inequality across western industrialized democracies. I explore an explanation of increases in economic inequality as a consequence of less representative democratic institutions. Explaining economic inequality in this manner is a shift from to the Transatlantic Consensus that attributes increased economic inequality to globalization. I expect to find that more representative electoral and governments institutions will be...
Show moreThis study examines the effects of political representation on economic inequality across western industrialized democracies. I explore an explanation of increases in economic inequality as a consequence of less representative democratic institutions. Explaining economic inequality in this manner is a shift from to the Transatlantic Consensus that attributes increased economic inequality to globalization. I expect to find that more representative electoral and governments institutions will be associated with lower levels of economic inequality. The analysis takes place across twenty-three countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) over the past forty years using a cross-sectional longitudinal model. Variables used to operationalize the level of representation of democratic institutions include a novel variable of the representative ratio, the effective number of parties, an index of institutional constraints, presidential system, single member districts, and judicial review. Voter turnout, the percentage of seats held by women, gross domestic product per capita, unemployment, and the size of the industrial sector are used as control variables. The findings support the main hypothesis: as political representation increases, economic inequality decreases.
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Date Issued
2014
Identifier
CFE0005230, ucf:50591
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005230
Interaction between income, health insurance, and self-rated health: A path analysis.
Title
Interaction between income, health insurance, and self-rated health: A path analysis.
Creator
Ashley West, Atalie, Unruh, Lynn, Malvey, Donna, Gau, Jacinta, Martin, Lawrence, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The political focus of equitable health outcomes in the United States have long centered on access to medical care. However, there is compelling evidence that access to medical care is only the bare minimum necessary to achieve health, and the true influence of health insurance on health is still unclear. Widely accepted models of health estimate that less than 20% of health outcomes can be attributed to clinical care, while greater than 50% is related to social and economic determinants of...
Show moreThe political focus of equitable health outcomes in the United States have long centered on access to medical care. However, there is compelling evidence that access to medical care is only the bare minimum necessary to achieve health, and the true influence of health insurance on health is still unclear. Widely accepted models of health estimate that less than 20% of health outcomes can be attributed to clinical care, while greater than 50% is related to social and economic determinants of health, with income being the most consistent predictor. As a result, this study investigated whether earned income is related to insurance status on the one hand and self-rated health on the other; whether the association between income and self-rated health is indirectly influenced by the presence of health insurance (-)namely private health insurance; whether there are differences in self-rated health between the privately insured, the publicly insured, and the uninsured; and if duration of uninsurance was inversely associated with self-rated health. As hypothesized, higher income was associated with having health insurance, and in particular private insurance. Among all included predictor variables, higher income and private insurance are the strongest predictors of higher self-rated health, and lower income and Medicaid were the strongest predictors of lower self-rated health. This study affirms that the health of persons with Medicaid is more similar to persons who are uninsured, and the health of persons with private insurance is more similar to those with Medicare. The association between income and self-rated health is indirectly influenced by health insurance. Age and education exerted the strongest overall influence on self-rated health: older respondents had lower self-rated health, and more educated respondents had higher self-rated health. And as uninsurance duration increased, self-rated health decreased. Additional studies are recommended to improve health insurance policy.
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Date Issued
2018
Identifier
CFE0007308, ucf:52151
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007308
Factors Contributing to Victim Employment, Victim Income Status, and Intimate Partner Violence in Jamaica
Title
Factors Contributing to Victim Employment, Victim Income Status, and Intimate Partner Violence in Jamaica.
Creator
Fraser, Marsha, Wan, Thomas, Yegidis, Bonnie, Dziegielewski, Sophia, Ross, Lee, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Using 166 IPV police reports in Jamaica, this mixed-methods study (a) explored the utility of routine activities theory and control balance theory for explaining the relationship between victim employment and IPV; (b) explored risk factors for IPV; and (c) examined the relationships between victim employment and victim income status with IPV murder and IPV severity in the Jamaica. Content analysis of the narratives of the police reports supported both theories suggesting an integration of the...
Show moreUsing 166 IPV police reports in Jamaica, this mixed-methods study (a) explored the utility of routine activities theory and control balance theory for explaining the relationship between victim employment and IPV; (b) explored risk factors for IPV; and (c) examined the relationships between victim employment and victim income status with IPV murder and IPV severity in the Jamaica. Content analysis of the narratives of the police reports supported both theories suggesting an integration of the two theories may be most fitting. Estrangement and infidelity emerged as bold themes. Infidelity was identified as an additional risk factor in the Jamaican context. Quantitative analysis revealed that employed victims and victims with income were significantly older than their counterparts. Being unemployed and having no income were associated with being female. Male victims were 4.98 times more likely to be employed and 7.30 times more likely to have income than female victims. Older victims were 2.36 times more likely to have income than younger victims. Victim employment and victim income status failed to predict the odds of IPV murder or to impact the level of IPV severity. However, the offender's weapon emerged as a salient predictor. When an offender used a sharp weapon or a gun, the odds of the victim being murdered was 4.77 greater and .71 greater respectively than if no such weapon was used. Using a sharp weapon magnified the IPV severity (B = 1.20) while using a gun reduced the IPV severity (B = .78). This study is useful for informing public policies addressing IPV in Jamaica.
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Date Issued
2019
Identifier
CFE0007632, ucf:52495
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007632
INSTITUTIONAL DESIGN AND ECONOMIC INEQUALITY: SOCIOECONOMIC ACTORS AND PUBLIC POLICY IN GERMANY AND THE UNITED STATES
Title
INSTITUTIONAL DESIGN AND ECONOMIC INEQUALITY: SOCIOECONOMIC ACTORS AND PUBLIC POLICY IN GERMANY AND THE UNITED STATES.
Creator
Hudson, Jennifer, Kinsey, Barbara, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
In this thesis I conduct a comparative analysis of the influence of socioeconomic actors, business and labor, on public policy in Germany and the United States, specifically public policy that has an impact on economic inequality. The objective of this study is to gain a better understanding of how institutional constructs may determine the level of influence by different socioeconomic actors on public policy. In particular, I examine the link between institutional design and economic...
Show moreIn this thesis I conduct a comparative analysis of the influence of socioeconomic actors, business and labor, on public policy in Germany and the United States, specifically public policy that has an impact on economic inequality. The objective of this study is to gain a better understanding of how institutional constructs may determine the level of influence by different socioeconomic actors on public policy. In particular, I examine the link between institutional design and economic inequality, specifically the relative influence of business interests in varying types of capitalist economies and democratic systems, and assess those facets of institutional design that may facilitate the channeling of business influence in policy making. I explore institutional changes in the German political and economic system beginning in the late 1980s to determine whether these changes have altered the policy making process over time, and analyze similarities with institutional changes that have taken place in the United States beginning in the late 1970s to present. Further, I examine whether shifts in institutional design indicate that the German system is transitioning towards a more liberal model similar to that of the United States, and consider what effects this may have on the level of economic inequality in Germany. To conduct my analysis I use the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework; based on the IAD framework I create a conceptual map of the channels by which socioeconomic actors are involved in the policy making process. I evaluate the policy-making process in both formal and informal policy arenas. The policy areas analyzed include corporate governance, industrial relations, and tax, welfare and minimum wage policy during the selected time periods. The analysis shows that the institutional designs that produced the selected policies benefit business interests and may contribute towards economic inequality. The larger goal is to develop research that will build a theoretical foundation to help us identify how these systems may be improved to produce a more equitable allocation of economic resources.
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Date Issued
2014
Identifier
CFH0004690, ucf:45243
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004690