The psychosocial & educational consequences of inequality ... Education is it Anyway... · The psychosocial & educational consequences of inequality for children ... Literacy score

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The psychosocial & educational

consequences of inequality for childrenRichard Wilkinson

Emeritus Professor of Social Epidemiology

3

Child outcomes found to be worse

in more unequal societies

• In rich countries

– Infant mortality

– Low birth weight

– Overweight

– Maths & literacy

scores

– Teenage births

– Child Conflict &

Bullying

– Social mobility

– UNICEF Index of

Child Wellbeing

• In US states

– Infant mortality

– Low birth weight

– Overweight

– Maths & literacy

scores

– Teenage pregnancy

– Mental health

problems

– Juvenile homicides

– High School drop outs

Caste

Unannounced

Caste

Announced

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

High Caste

Low Caste

Nu

mbe

r of

mazes s

olv

ed

Source: Hoff K, Pandey P, World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 3351, June 2004

‘Stereotype threat’ experiments show that

status differentiation has a direct effect on

cognitive performance

“Not a test of ability”

5

6

7

8

9

10 High SES

Low SES

“Test of ability”

Effect of stereotype threat Advanced Progressive Matrices Test: high & low SES

Croizeta JC; Dutrevis M. Socioeconomic Status and Intelligence. J Poverty 2004; 8(3): 91-107.

Nu

mb

er

of

ite

ms

corr

ect

7

Income per head and life-expectancy: rich & poor countries

Source: Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level (2009) www.equalitytrust.org.uk

www.equalitytrust.org.ukWilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level

Life expectancy in rich countries is

no longer related to National Income per head

70

71

72

73

74

75

76

77

78

79

80

Local Neighbourhoods

(in England & Wales)

Life

exp

ecta

ncy (

ye

ars

)

Richest Poorest

Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level www.equalitytrust.org.uk

Life expectancy is strongly related to

income within rich countries

3.7 3.94.3

4.6 4.85.2 5.3

5.6 5.6 5.6 5.76.1 6.2

6.7 6.8 6.87.2

8.5

9.7

4.0

8.0

7.0

3.4

Japan

Fin

land

No

rway

Sw

eden

Denm

ark

Belg

ium

Au

str

iaG

erm

an

yN

eth

erl

ands

Sp

ain

Fra

nce

Canada

Sw

izte

rland

Irela

nd

Gre

ece

Italy

Isra

el

New

Zeala

nd

Au

str

alia

UK

Po

rtugal

US

AS

ingap

ore

Income gaps

How many times richer

are the richest fifth than

the poorest fifth?


Inequality...

How much richer are the richest 20% in

each country than the poorest 20%?

Health and social problems with social gradients

and internationally comparable data

• Life expectancy

• Math & Literacy

• Infant mortality

• Homicides

• Imprisonment

• Teenage births

• Trust

• Obesity

• Mental illness – incl. drug &

alcohol addiction

• Social mobility

Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level

Index of:

• Life expectancy

• Math & Literacy


• Homicides

• Imprisonment

• Teenage births

• Trust

• Obesity

• Mental illness

– incl. drug &

alcohol

addiction

• Social mobility

www.equalitytrust.org.uk

Health and social problems are worse

in more unequal countries

Ind

ex

of

hea

lth

an

d s

oc

ial

pro

ble

ms


Neither health nor social problems are

related to national income per head

Index of:

• Life expectancy

• Math & Literacy


• Homicides

• Imprisonment

• Teenage births

• Trust

• Obesity

• Mental illness

– incl. drug &

alcohol

addiction

• Social mobility Ind

ex o

f h

ealt

h a

nd

so

cia

l p

rob

lem

s


Child Wellbeing is not related to National Income per head


Child well-being is better in more equal countries


People in more unequal countries

trust each other less

0

30

60

90

120

150

180

Income Inequality

Ho

mic

ide

s p

er

millio

n p

eo

ple

Low High

Daly M, Wilson M, Vasdev S. Income inequality and homicide rates in Canada and the United States. Can J Crim 2001; 43: 219-36.

Homicide rates are higher in more unequal

US states and Canadian provinces

USA states

Canadian provinces

18

Cuernavaca, Mexico

‘Armed Response’ - Pretoria, South Africa.

Bowles & Jayadev, NYT 2014

Societies with wider Income differences need more “guard labor”

Inequality (Gini)

Pro

tec

tive

se

rvic

e e

mp

loye

es

pe

r 1

0,0

00

wo

rke

rs

20

The proportion

of ‘guard’ labor

grew with

inequality.

USA 1979-2000


Imprisonment rates are higher in

more unequal countries

The age of criminal responsibility is lower in

more unequal societies

Layte R, Whelan CT. Who Feels Inferior? A Test of the Status Anxiety Hypothesis of

Social Inequalities in Health. European Sociological Review, 2014.

Status Anxiety across income deciles for

high, medium and low inequality countriesS

tatu

s A

nxie

ty

Income deciles

Countries with:

High inequality

Medium inequality

Low inequality

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

Other

tasks

Tasks with ‘social

evaluative threat’

(uncontrollable)

Co

rtis

ol re

sp

on

se

(eff

ect

siz

e)

Dickerson SS, Kemeny ME. Acute stressors and cortisol

responses. Psychological Bulletin 2004; 130(3): 355-91.

What kind of stressful tasks raise

stress hormones most?

Alan Bennett, Untold Stories, Faber/Profile, 2005

“(My parents) put…down…most of their imagined

shortcomings to their not having been educated, education

(was) to them a passport to everything they lacked: self-

confidence, social ease and above all the ability to be like

other people.

Put simply and as they themselves would have put it, both my

parents were shy, a shortcoming they thought of as an

affliction while at the same time enshrining it as a virtue.

I assured them, falsely, that everybody felt much as they did

but that social ease was something that could and should be

faked.

‘Well, you can do that,’ Dad would say, ‘you've been

educated,’ adding how often he felt he had nothing to

contribute. ‘I'm boring, I think. I can't understand why anybody

likes us. I wonder sometimes whether they do, really.’

The Dominance Behavioural System

Research on the Dominance Behavioural System, (using self-

reports, observational, experimental and biological methods),

shows that:-

• Externalizing disorders, mania proneness, and narcissistic

traits are related to heightened dominance motivation and

behaviour.

• Mania and narcissistic traits are related to inflated self-

perceptions of power.

• Anxiety and depression are related to subordination,

submissiveness and the desire to avoid subordination.

Johnson SL, Leedom LJ, Muhtadie L. The Dominance Behavioral System

and Psychopathology. Psychological Bulletin, 2012; 138(4): 692-743.


Mental illness is more common in


Messias E, Eaton WW, et al. . Economic grand rounds: Income inequality and depression

across the United States: an ecological study." Psychiatric Services, 2011; 62(7): 710-2.

Depression is more common in more unequal statesP

erc

en

t o

f p

op

ula

tio

n

dep

ressed

in

past

2 w

eeks

Income Inequality (Gini)

Inequality data from World Top Incomes Database

Narcissism data from Twenge JM, et al., Journal of Personality 2008; 76(4): 875-901.

Na

rcis

sim

Sc

ore

(N

PI)

Rising Narcissism & Income Inequality in the USA

Loughnan S, et al. Economic Inequality is linked to biased self-perception. Psychological Science, 2011; 22: 1254

Self enhancement increases in more unequal

societies

Two recent studies show that inequality

increases conspicuous consumption

and consumerism

• People in more unequal areas of the USA

are more likely to buy high status cars

• Data from Google searches shows that

people in more unequal states and more

unequal countries are more likely to

search for status goods

More children drop out of High School in more unequal US states

Low Income inequality High

% d

rop

pin

g o

ut

of

hig

h s

ch

oo

l

Wilkinson & Pickett 2009

School bullying is much more common in more

countries with bigger income differences.11-year-olds in 37 countries (r = .62)

Elgar FJ. et al. School bullying, homicide and income inequality. International Journal

of Public Health 58, 237-245, 2013.

Income inequality (Gini)

% o

f 11yr

old

s w

ho

bu

llie

d o

thers

two

or

mo

re t

imes p

er

mo

nth

Source: Wilkinson and Pickett. Lancet 2006; 367:1126-8. Data from: OECD

(2004), Learning for Tomorrow’s World: first results for PISA 2003.

Maths & Literacy scores and Income Inequality

Mean numeracy score

Inco

me i

neq

uality

(G

ini)

Numeracy scores are lower where income gaps are bigger

Van Damme D. How closely is the distribution of skills related to countries'

overall level of social inequality? EDU NAEC Paper Series, Paris: OECD, 2014

Van Damme, D. (2014) ‘How closely is the distribution of skills related to countries'

overall level of social inequality?’, EDU NAEC Paper Series, Paris: OECD.

Literacy score difference between 25th & 75th percentiles

Inco

me I

neq

uality

(G

ini)

Bigger educational inequalities go with bigger income gaps

Hig

h

So

cia

l M

ob

ilit

y

Lo

w

Social Mobility (intergenerational income

elasticity) is lower in countries with bigger

income differences

More children are overweight in more unequal countries

Source: Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level (2009)

40

Teenage Birth Rates are Higher in More Unequal Rich Countries



Imprisonment rates are higher in

more unequal countries

The age of criminal responsibility is lower in


The Jekyll & Hyde of

Public Health?

• Friendship in contrast, is based on

reciprocity, mutuality, social

obligations, sharing and a recognition

of each other’s needs.

• Social status (dominance hierarchies,

pecking orders) are orderings based on

power, coercion and privileged access to

resources – regardless of the needs of

others.

Companion Spanish: Compañero;

French: Copain

from the Latin “Con” (with)

and “Pan” (bread)

- someone with whom you eat bread

Marshall

Sahlins

“Gifts make friends and

friends make gifts”

Stone Age Economics (1974)

FJ Elgar , W Craig , SJ Trites. Journal of Adolescent Health, 2013; 52(4): 433-8

Children in families that eat together

have better mental health

A two stage process: parental experiences

of inequality shape child development

Parenting styles prepare children for the kind of

social relations they may have to deal with in

adulthood

Preparation for a society dependent on:-

• trust, cooperation, reciprocity, empathy?

or:

• fending for yourself, not trusting others?

The share of income going to the richest 1%

48

Colin Gordon’s analysis of Historical Statistics for the US, unionstats.com, Piketty and

Saez 2003, and World Top Incomes Database. Economic Policy Institute, Washington DC.

Trade Unions membership (% workforce) and

Share of Income going to top 10% (USA, 1918-2008)

49

http://www.fabians.

org.uk/publications

/a-convenient-

truth/

51

http://www.equalitytrust.org.uk

For more information:

… a book

and a

website…

The growing income share of the richest 1%

Belfield et al, Living Standards, Poverty & Inequality.

Institute of Fiscal Studies, 2015

Mishel L, Sabadish N. Economic Policy Institute Brief #331. Washington, May 2012

Changing ratio of CEO pay to average pay of production &

non-supervisory workers in top 350 US companies

Between 1979-2007 the income of the:-

Top 0.1% increased by 362%

Top 1% increased by 156%

Bottom 90% increased by17%

Literacy Scores of 16-25 year olds by

Parents' Education

-1.5

-1

-0.5

0

0.5

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

Parents' Education (years)

Lit

era

cy s

co

re

Sweden

Canada

United States

Source: Willms JD. 1997. Data from OECD Programme for International Student Assessment.

0

5

10

15

Single

mothers

Low HighFather's occupational class

Infa

nt

death

s p

er

1000 England & Wales

Sweden

Leon, D. A., D. Vagero, et al. (1992). "Social class differences in infant mortality

in Sweden: comparison with England and Wales." Brit Med J 305(6855): 687-91.

The benefits of greater equality are not confined

to the poor but extend to all social classes

Infant mortality by class: Sweden compared with England & Wales

More children (10-17yrs) are overweight

in more unequal US states

Wilkinson and Pickett, 2009

Perc

en

t of

child

ren

overw

eig

ht

57

The effects of inequality probably

involve two stages:

• First come the adult experience of social

relations in a more unequal society

• Then parenting styles serve to pass on the

adult experience of adversity to children –

(sometimes involving epigenetic changes)

Australia

Austria

Belgium Canada

Denmark

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Ireland

Israel

Italy

Japan

Netherlands

New Zealand

Norway

Portugal

Spain

Sweden

UK

USA

Worse

Better

UN

ICE

F in

de

x o

f child

well-

bein

g

0 10 20 30Lone parents as % of all households with dependent children

Single parents and child wellbeing

Source: Wilkinson RG, Pickett KE, 2009.

A woman, her mother and two sisters all

received 12-month suspended sentences for

goading her toddlers to fight each other.

A video of the toddlers fighting was found by their father on

leave from the army.

The video showed the women laughing as the children hit

each other. The boy, aged two, is seen crying after being

punched in the face by his three-year-old sister and is told

by one of the four women in the room "not to be a wimp or a

faggot" and to hit the girl back after she struck him.

When interviewed by police, the toddler’s grandmother said:

"I didn't see any harm in toughening them up - I done the

same with my own children."

Child maltreatment is more common in

more unequal counties of the USA

(controlling for child poverty, demographic and economic factors)

Eckenrode J, Smith EG, McCarthy ME, Dineen M.

Income inequality and child maltreatment in the United States.

Pediatrics 133, 454-461, 2014.

Child conflict & Inequality: rich countries11, 13 & 15 yr olds fighting, bullying, peers not kind & helpful

Pickett & Wilkinson, BMJ 2007

Data from WHO, Health Behaviour in School-age Children study, 2001.

Inequality change 2000-2010 (gini)

Ch

ild

wellb

ein

g C

han

ge 2

000

-2010

Changes in inequality and child wellbeing (UNICEF Index)

Pickett KE, Wilkinson RG. Pediatrics 2015; 135, S39-S47.

63

Infant Mortality Rates are Higher in More Unequal Countries



Social mobility is lower in more unequal countries

The psychosocial & educational consequences of inequality ... Education is it Anyway... · The psychosocial & educational consequences of inequality for children ... Literacy score

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