Inequality: Challenging the Status Quo

Inequality has been one of the dominant economic concerns over the past decade. Claims that increases in wealth benefit only those at the top and have a negligible impact on the lower rungs of the economic ladder are driving the discussion. However, these claims rest upon a tradition of analysing income developments over time by looking at the development within a particular income bracket and say nothing about the income developments experienced by actual individuals. By analysing individuals rather than groups, Martin Agerup, President of Danish Think Tank CEPOS, presents a new way of thinking about inequality. This focus on individual socioeconomic mobility — the ability to move up and down the rungs of the economic ladder — challenges the view that those with lower incomes receive no benefits from increases in total wealth.