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Wealth Inequality: A Survey

September 2015

Abstract: We survey the issues involved in comparing wealth distributions and measuring wealth inequality with illustrations from the Eurosystem Household Finance and Consumption Survey.

Type: Journal article
Theme(s): Wealth accumulation and wealth inequality
10.1111/joes.12114
RePEc:bla:jecsur:v:29:y:2015:i:4:p:671-710

Reference

Cowell, F.A. & Van Kerm, P. (2015), 'Wealth Inequality: A Survey', Journal of Economic Surveys, 29(4), 671-710.

@ARTICLE{pvk-471,
	Author = {Cowell, Frank A. and Van Kerm, Philippe},
	Title = {Wealth Inequality: {A} Survey},
	Journal = {Journal of Economic Surveys},
	Volume = {29},
	Number = {4},
	Pages = {671-710},
	Month = sep,
	Year = {2015}
}

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Other versions

Cowell, F.A. & Van Kerm, P. (2016), 'Wealth Inequality: A Survey', in E. Claus & I. Claus, A Collection of Surveys on Savings and Wealth Accumulation, John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, UK, Ch.5, pp.93-137.    

Presentation(s) of this work (PVK only)

Wealth Inequality: A Survey. Household Finance and Consumption Network Meeting, Frankfurt, 2017.

Dataset(s) used in the paper

Other papers using the same datasets...

Lekfuangfu, W.N., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2026), 'Bequest division: The roles of parental motives and children’s gender composition', Labour Economics, 10295.    

Morelli, S., Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C. & Van Kerm, P. (2025), 'The influence of inheritances on wealth inequality in rich countries', Journal of Public Economics, 247(C), 105398.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2022), 'The wealth (disadvantage) of single-parent households', Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 702(1), 188-204.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2021), 'Intergenerational wealth transfers and wealth inequality in rich countries: What do we learn from Gini decomposition?', Economics Letters, 199, 10970.    

Morelli, S., Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C. & Van Kerm, P. (2021), 'Inheritance, gifts and the accumulation of wealth for low-income households', Journal of European Social Policy, 31(5), 533-548.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2020), 'The Wealth of Families: The Intergenerational Transmission of Wealth in Britain in Comparative Perspective', Report to the Nuffield Foundation, Institute for New Economic Thinking, Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.    

Chauvel, L., Hartung, A., Bar-Haim, E. & Van Kerm, P. (2019), 'Income and Wealth Above the Median: New Measurements and Results for Europe and the United States', in K. Decancq & P. Van Kerm, What Drives Inequality?, Research on Economic Inequality27, Emerald Publishing Ltd, Bingley, pp.89-104.    

Nolan, B., Morelli, S. & Van Kerm, P. (2018), 'Wealth Inequality', in B. Nolan, Generating Prosperity for Working Families in Affluent Countries, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, Ch.12, pp.312-334.    

Carpantier, J.-F., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2018), 'Macroprudential policy and household wealth inequality', Journal of International Money and Finance, 85(C), 262-277.    

Cowell, F.A., Nolan, B., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2017), 'Wealth, Top Incomes, and Inequality', in K. Hamilton & C. Hepburn, National Wealth: What is Missing, Why it Matters, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, Ch.8, pp.175-203.    


Some bibliometrics

99 citations according to OpenAlex

113 citations according to CitEc (RePEc)

110 downloads from RePEc services, according to LogEc

All versions of this work together, as of 17 October 2026. Each source covers different material, so the figures differ and are not added up.

Other papers on the same theme(s)

Olivera, J., Schokkaert, E. & Van Kerm, P. (2026), 'The role of information in eliciting support for inheritance taxation: experimental evidence from Luxembourg', International Tax and Public Finance.    

Lekfuangfu, W.N., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2026), 'Bequest division: The roles of parental motives and children’s gender composition', Labour Economics, 10295.    

Morelli, S., Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C. & Van Kerm, P. (2025), 'The influence of inheritances on wealth inequality in rich countries', Journal of Public Economics, 247(C), 105398.    

Chauvel, L., Bar-Haim, E., Hartung, A. & Van Kerm, P. (2024), 'Increasing Inequality in Joint Income and Wealth Distributions in the United States, 1995 to 2013', Luxembourg Wealth Study Working Paper 46, LIS Cross-National Data Center, Esch/Alzette, Luxembourg.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2022), 'Intergenerational wealth transfers in Great Britain from the Wealth and Assets Survey in comparative perspective', Fiscal Studies, 43(2), 179-199.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2022), 'The wealth (disadvantage) of single-parent households', Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 702(1), 188-204.    

Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2022), 'Public Support for Tax Policies in COVID-19 Times: Evidence from Luxembourg', International Tax and Public Finance, 29(6), 1395-1418.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2021), 'Intergenerational wealth transfers and wealth inequality in rich countries: What do we learn from Gini decomposition?', Economics Letters, 199, 10970.    

Morelli, S., Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C. & Van Kerm, P. (2021), 'Inheritance, gifts and the accumulation of wealth for low-income households', Journal of European Social Policy, 31(5), 533-548.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2020), 'The Wealth of Families: The Intergenerational Transmission of Wealth in Britain in Comparative Perspective', Report to the Nuffield Foundation, Institute for New Economic Thinking, Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.    

Nolan, B., Palomino, J.C., Van Kerm, P. & Morelli, S. (2020), 'The intergenerational transmission of wealth in rich countries', VoxEU 19 September 2020, Centre for Economic Policy Research, London, UK.    

Chauvel, L., Hartung, A., Bar-Haim, E. & Van Kerm, P. (2019), 'Income and Wealth Above the Median: New Measurements and Results for Europe and the United States', in K. Decancq & P. Van Kerm, What Drives Inequality?, Research on Economic Inequality27, Emerald Publishing Ltd, Bingley, pp.89-104.    

Nolan, B., Morelli, S. & Van Kerm, P. (2018), 'Wealth Inequality', in B. Nolan, Generating Prosperity for Working Families in Affluent Countries, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, Ch.12, pp.312-334.    

Carpantier, J.-F., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2018), 'Macroprudential policy and household wealth inequality', Journal of International Money and Finance, 85(C), 262-277.    

Cowell, F.A., Nolan, B., Olivera, J. & Van Kerm, P. (2017), 'Wealth, Top Incomes, and Inequality', in K. Hamilton & C. Hepburn, National Wealth: What is Missing, Why it Matters, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, Ch.8, pp.175-203.    

Jäntti, M., Sierminska, E.M. & Van Kerm, P. (2015), 'Modeling the Joint Distribution of Income and Wealth', in T. Garner & K. Short, Measurement of Poverty, Deprivation, and Economic Mobility, Research on Economic Inequality23, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp.301-327.    

Jäntti, M., Sierminska, E.M. & Van Kerm, P. (2013), 'The joint distribution of income and wealth', in J. Gornick & M. Jäntti, Economic Inequality in Cross-National Perspective, Social Inequality Series, Stanford University Press, USA.