Journal of Economic Literature
ISSN 0022-0515 (Print) | ISSN 2328-8175 (Online)
Stratification Economics: Core Constructs and Policy Implications
Journal of Economic Literature
vol. 60,
no. 2, June 2022
(pp. 377–99)
Abstract
This article introduces the core constructs of stratification economics to provide a coherent explanation for the persistence of intergroup inequalities. Aligned with the critical race theory concept of "the property rights in Whiteness," stratification economics explicitly incorporates the concepts of identity-group investment and group-based agency in the construction of identity-group hierarchies. We survey the intellectual lineage, foundations, tenets and theoretical underpinnings of stratification economics, and conclude with a treatise on inclusive economic rights as an appropriate policy frame to empower people and counteract structural inequalities generated from inter-group conflict and competition for preferred outcomes.Citation
Chelwa, Grieve, Darrick Hamilton, and James Stewart. 2022. "Stratification Economics: Core Constructs and Policy Implications." Journal of Economic Literature 60 (2): 377–99. DOI: 10.1257/jel.20211687Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D63 Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
- G51 Household Finance: Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
- I14 Health and Inequality
- I24 Education and Inequality
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- J31 Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
- Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification