THE GINI COEFFICIENT. DECOMPOSITION AND OVERLAPPING

  • Augustine C. ARIZE
  • Paraskevas BAKAREZOS
  • Krishna M. KASIBHATLA
  • John MALINDRETOS
  • Alex PANAYIDES

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present the process of decomposition and its relation to the Gini
coefficient with emphasis on the explanation of the nature of the overlapping component (or interaction effect)
which arises during decomposition and it is usually treated as an awkward by-product of this process. It is shown
that exact decomposition without the presence of the overlapping effect is possible even when group income
distributions are overlapping under condition that data on individual incomes are available. The problem is purely
mathematical and it arises when decomposition is accompanied by replacement individual income comparisons
with differences in mean group income between pairs of groups. In this case, the overlapping component can be
completely separated from the other two, the “within” and “between” inequality components. Furthermore, the
case of grouped data is considered that does not allow exact separation of the component.
Published
2014-08-15
How to Cite
ARIZE, Augustine C. et al. THE GINI COEFFICIENT. DECOMPOSITION AND OVERLAPPING. Journal of Advanced Studies in Finance, [S.l.], v. 5, n. 1, p. 47-55, aug. 2014. ISSN 2068-8393. Available at: <https://journals.aserspublishing.eu/jasf/article/view/96>. Date accessed: 21 nov. 2024.
Section
Journal of Advanced Studies in Finance