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1. Happiness and health in China: The paradox of progress

Author:
Carol Graham, Shaojie Zhou, and Junyi Zhang
Publication Date:
06-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
The past two decades in China brought unprecedented rates of economic growth, development, and poverty reduction. Indeed, much of the reduction in the world’s extreme poverty rates during that time can be explained by the millions of people in China who exited poverty. GDP per capita and household consumption increased fourfold between the years 1990 and 2005.1 China jumped 10 places forward on the Human Development Index from 2008 until 2013, moving up to 93 of 187 countries, and life expectancy climbed to 75.3 years, compared to 67 years in 1980.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Health, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
China

2. Do Trends in U.S. Inequality Matter for Norms of Global Governance? Concepts and Empirics for Debate

Author:
Carol Graham
Publication Date:
01-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
The United States has long been viewed as the "land of opportunity," where those who work hard get ahead. Belief in this feature of American national identity has persisted even though inequality has been rising for de¬cades. In recent years, the trend toward extremes of income and wealth has accelerated significantly, owing to demographic shifts, the skills bias of the economy and fiscal policy. From 1997 to 2007, the share of income accru¬ing to the top 1 percent of U.S. households increased by 13.5 percentage points, which is equivalent to shifting $1.1 trillion in total annual income to this group - more than the total income of the bottom 40 percent of households. The precise impact of inequality on individual well-being remains controversial, partly because of the complex nature of the metrics needed to gauge it accurately, but also because why it matters depends on what it signals. If inequality is perceived to be the result of just reward for individual effort, then it can be a constructive signal of future opportunities. However, if it is perceived to be the result of an unfair system that rewards a privileged few, inequality can undermine incentives to work hard and invest in the future. In this sense, current U.S. trends have been largely destructive. Economic mobility, for example, has declined in recent decades and is now lower than in many other industrialized countries. There is also a strong intergenerational income correlation (about 0.5) in the U.S.; children of parents who earn 50 percent more than the average are likely to earn 25 percent above the average of their generation. In a world in which individuals' fates are increasingly linked and effective gover¬nance depends on some kind of consensus on social and distributive justice norms, growing income differentials in one country - especially one that has long served as a beacon of economic opportunity - can affect behavior elsewhere, both in terms of investments in education and the labor market and the propensity to protest. More generally, declining economic mobility in the U.S. could undermine confidence in the principles of market econo¬mies and democratic governance that America has espoused for decades - principles that are fundamental to many countries' development strategies.
Topic:
Economics, Poverty, Social Stratification, and Labor Issues
Political Geography:
United States and Germany

3. Persistent Poverty in Developing Countries: Determining the Causes and Closing the Gaps

Author:
Moeen Qureshi, Meghan O'Sullivan, Michael Walton, Carol Graham, Moises Naim, Jacques Attali, and Nancy Bearg Dyke
Publication Date:
12-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
As we start the final countdown to the new century, about one fourth of the world's population—1.3 billion people—live in absolute poverty, while almost another third are very poor by every measure. The blight of poverty thus continues to challenge the international community. Despite globalization, expanding markets, years of anti–poverty efforts and the hopes kindled in the embers of the Cold War, the number of the poor in the world has risen and continues to rise with population growth. The manifestations of extreme poverty and the growing gap between rich and poor, both within and between countries, pose an undeniable threat to the prospects for peace and security and raise concerns about inequity. Given the continued trend toward global interconnectedness, finding solutions to persistent poverty has assumed an unprecedented urgency. However, this pressing international issue is barely visible on the agendas of the industrialized nations, whose interests are affected and whose attention and resources will continue to be indispensable in the fight against poverty. To be sure, there has been progress in poverty reduction, particularly in the last decade as globalization, spreading capitalism and markets, and technological advancement have combined to reduce the percentage of people living in poverty and to create new middle classes. Infant mortality has been cut in half; life expectancy, on average, has increased by a decade. But recent developments in East Asia are a reminder that, even where development and poverty reduction have occurred, the possibility for reversal exists. And the persistently huge numbers of poor and pockets of extreme poverty testify to the unevenness of globalization and the need for new strategies and reinvigorated attention to the problem of poverty. The Aspen Institute International Peace and Security Program convened the conference on “Persistent Poverty in Developing Countries: Determining the Causes and Closing the Gaps” December 14, 1997, to discuss the current trends that affect poverty and suggest ideas for the most effective strategies for poverty eradication in the 21st century. Meeting in Broadway, England, the 24 experienced and highly respected participants from all regions of the world represented diverse professional and cultural perspectives that enriched the discussion.
Topic:
Economics, Emerging Markets, Globalization, International Political Economy, and Third World
Political Geography:
United States