Digital Commons Network^™

Economic Development And Income Inequality: The Taiwan Case, Ju-Kuang Chang

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines income inequality in Taiwan from three perspectives: economic development, political democracy, and world-system/dependence. Education, population growth, population structure, unemployment, savings, and export growth are treated as variables. Below are the important conclusions.

Economic development has an effect on income inequality. The level of development is crucial. In the 1950s and 1960s, the relationship was significant, but in the next two decades economic development did not further decrease income inequality. Sector dualism was not a good predictor.

Democratization did not have an obvious relation with income inequality. But the stable political environment and the endeavors of government to …