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Dimensions of Wealth Dispersion Among Farm Operator Households: An Assessment of the Impact of Farm Subsidies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2005

Hisham S. El-Osta  and
Ashok K. Mishra
Hisham S. El-Osta
Affiliation:
Resource Economics Division, Economic Research Service (ERS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, DC
Ashok K. Mishra
Affiliation:
Resource Economics Division, Economic Research Service (ERS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, DC
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Abstract

This paper uses microlevel data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey to examine the changes in the distributions of household wealth and to assess the role farm subsidies play, among other factors, in affecting these distributions. The empirical analysis relies on the concept of the adjusted Gini coefficient and on fixed-effect regression procedures. Coefficients from fixed-effects estimation indicate a negative correlation between government payments and wealth dispersion, with the effect shifting toward more of a positive relation when government payments were allowed to interact with regional dummies.

Keywords

adjusted Gini coefficientAgricultural Resource Management Surveyfixed-effects regressiongovernment subsidieslife cyclewealth dispersionC33D31D63O18Q15
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics , Volume 37 , Issue 1 , April 2005 , pp. 187 - 208
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2005

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