PART I: THEORY DEADLY DISPARITIES

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PART I THEORY DEADLY DISPARITIES
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Theory of RELATIVE DEPRIVATION

• a person (or group) feels more or less deprived
  on basis of comparisons between ones own
  situation and that of comparable others
• relative subjective perception of gap
• between self and relevant REFERENCE GROUP

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Theory of Relative Deprivation

• disparities between individuals in small groups
• The American Soldier
• Researchers found morale higher in companies
  with lowest promotion rates?
• WHY?????

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Relative deprivation among soldiers in small
groups

• A soldiers satisfaction level is based on the
  promotion rate of relevant reference groups
  (other soldiers in their unit) and not on the
  basis of some objective standard (highest
  promotion rate in all units)
• Tested this hypothesis repeatedly
• ..gt
• confirmed empirical generalization

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Theory of Relative Deprivation

• Theory generalized and extended since 1950s to
  explain
• riots, rebellions
• ethnic conflict

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Social Inequities Riots,
rebellions, ethnic unrest

• Why is social unrest more likely after a
• period of economic improvement for
• objectively deprived (I.e..., poorest) groups?

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Probability of political unrest highest as Gap E
O increases

• Expectations
• Objective conditions
• (average annual income)
• 
  Time

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What's KNOWN

• OTHER Levels of Analysis
• I.E..., Causes of conflicts between
• Developing and
• Developed countries
• also caused by GAP in things of value
• (e.g..., National Income, Terms of Trade,
• Investment flows)
  

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Conflicts between North and Southern
nation-states

• ECONOMIC GAP
• Developed
• Developing Countries
• Wealth (GNP)
• International Capital
• Trade

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So what is all this research telling us?????
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Relative inequalities - gap highest and lowest

• Promotion rates military units (reference
• 
  group)
• Domestic unrest (gap objective conditions
• expectations over
  time)
• Conflict between rich and poor countries
  (Relative not objective
• status
  -GNP,capital)

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Part II

• HOW HARMFUL ARE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, and POLITICAL
  DISPARITIES????

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Recent research is also indicating

• Relative GAPs in Wages, Income, Wealth among
  individuals
• may be harmful to
• individuals health

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What do cities in Column AB have in common?

• Column A
• Biloxi, Miss.
• Las Cruces, NM
• Steubenville, Ohio

• Column B
• Allentown, PA.
• Pittsfield, Mass.
• Milwaukee, Wis.

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MORTALITY RATES

• Differences in income disparities
• (gaps rich-poor)

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Study 282 areas - USMortality rates RELATIVE
not absolute income gap

• High Mortality Rates
• Biloxi, Miss.
• Las Cruces, NM
• Steubenville, Ohio

• Low Mortality Rates
• Allentown, PA
• Pittsfield, Mass.
• Milwaukee, Wis..

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Widening gap in incomes of Americans since 1970s

• James Lardner (1998)
• income gains since 1970s
• gone to top 20 households only
• in US
• INFERENCE..???

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Widening Gap Rich Everyone else in US

• Bill Gates
• wealthier than half American people put together
• Whats the inference?

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Deadly Disparities

• Americans widening gap in income may be
  narrowing our life span
• James Lardner (1998)

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So What????

• Is income inequalities also harmful to your
  individual health?

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Comparative Evidence that income inequalities
are harmful to individual health?

• Income Life
• Inequality Expectancy
• US 76.2
• Japan 79.8
• Reasons for difference in life expectancies?

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Researchers interpretation Why Equality of
incomegtreliable predictor of health/life span?

• JAPAN
• X1Equality of income (small gap executives
  other working men)
• X2 Low unemployment (until recently)
• NOT cultural homogeneity
• Y1 Average life span
• Y2 Lung cancer rate (lower in Japan even though
  smoking rate 2x US)

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Additional Cross-national correlational data

• US Vs. Swedengt
• countries with large differences and wealth.gt
• higher rates chronic illnesses
• lower life expectancies

• WHY????
• Cigarettes
• Fatty foods
• Occupation
• most significant

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Which occupations most harmful to your health?

• K-sector
• Knowledge workers
• C-sector
• Workers making
• consumption goods
• S-sector
• Workers in service
• sector

• Which sector employs most Americans?

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80 Americans work in Service Sector (S-sector)

• Low (minimum) wages
• No subsidized health care
• No corporate pension plan
• Few opportunities for upward mobility

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Additional evidence Cross-sectional correlations
Occupation Health

• 1970 Study
• Large-scale N17,000
• British
• civil servants
• several occupations

• Who had more heart attacks?
• higher rates of cancer?
• higher rates other illnesses
• Clerks or managers?
• Chief Statisticians or
• Assist. Statisticians?

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Difference in job rankgtstrong predictor health

• Clerks Assistant Statisticians
• 4 times more heart attacks
• (not executive stress)
• same pattern other illnesses

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Psychological factors -Why is it more
unhealthy to be a clerk than the boss????

• links mental psy HEALTH to
• -Perceived control - own destiny (work)
• -Degree of social integration (vs.. isolation)
• social capital trust

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Is there a Law of Comparative DIS- advantage?????

• Do people feel better
• when there are lots
• worse off than they
• are?
• Interpersonal relations
• Politics?
• Domestic
• International