ABSTRACT
In their globally appraised book, The Spirit Level, Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett (2009) set out to prove statistically what the majority of even moderately progressive people have held to be true for decades, i.e., (to put it simply) equal societies are better to live in. Perhaps the key argument of their book is not, however, that an equal society entails better living conditions for the poor. The groundbreaking and politically transformative thesis is rather that an equal society is in fact better for everyone. Even the wealthy are relatively better off in a society characterized by a high level of income equality. Equal societies display lower levels of crime and violence, fewer social problems, better health for all (longer life expectancy, lower levels of mental illness and drug use), as well as higher levels of social trust, happiness, and satisfaction with life. Thus, income equality is an important determinant of a Good Society.
