Economic literature presents mixed empirical evidence about the relationship between
inequality and economic well-being, from both a macroeconomic perspective and a microeconomic perspective. In addition, the concept of inequality in outcomes (such as income) is often used as a driver of social justice, which is instead better expressed by the concept of inequality of opportunity, such that a frequent overlapping of the two concepts arises also from an ethical perspective. My project builds on these premises and innovates past results in two steps. First, it introduces in the analysis new measures of both income and opportunity inequalities, computing them at several geographical levels. Second, it tests the linear and non-linear impact of any type of inequality on economic well-being selecting among different model specifications.
The present work will contribute to finally and permanently disentangle the effect of social inequality, both in strict economic terms (income inequality) and in broader terms (inequality of opportunity), on individuals' wellbeing, either subjective (happiness, life satisfaction, life sense) or objective (economic growth). The relevance its conclusions will spill from the academic to the applied policy framework. Indeed, the findings of this work may contribute not only to clarify the academic debate about the right level of inequality for growth or subjective wellbeing, but may suggest optimal policy measures to pursue such level as well.