The Poor and the Rich: Preferences over Inflation and Unemployment

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking
Year: 2021
Volume: 53
Issue: 4
Pages: 875-895

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

What are the tradeoffs that the public is willing to accept between inflation and unemployment? We find that people dislike extra points of unemployment more than extra points of inflation. This is true for both Europe and Latin America. For the latter, the aversion to unemployment relative to inflation is much greater. Moreover, in both regions, the poor's distaste for extra points of unemployment relative to inflation is significantly greater than that of the rich. This result contributes to the literature on the costs of inflation and questions the commonly held view that prescribes strong anti‐inflationary postures as a way to implement policies consistent with the preferences of the poor.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:wly:jmoncb:v:53:y:2021:i:4:p:875-895
Journal Field
Macro
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29