The Gini Index Weights Income by the Proportion of People Receiving More

Abstract

The paper reviews literature generating the conclusion that a Gini Index of income inequality weights each income by the proportion of people receiving more. The result is derived graphically by rotating the Lorenz Curve clockwise by 90 degrees and by a variant of integration by parts. The result has applications to taxation, transfers and income increments, and yields a weighting of incomes intuitively relevant to inequality.