Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This paper introduces a new variance-based measure of inequality of opportunity (EOp) grounded in a decomposition of the Coefficient of Variation (CV). Our approach disentangles overall inequality into a between-group component driven by circumstances beyond individual control (e.g., gender, family background, or region of birth) and a within-group component which captures effort and idiosyncratic heterogeneity. Within this framework, we characterize three increasingly stringent EOp criteria, capturing equality in group means, equality in within-group dispersion, and their joint validity. Using EU-SILC income data, we illustrate the conceptual and empirical relevance of the method data and highlight substantial cross-country heterogeneity in both average outcomes and within-type variability across European countries. The results show that mean-based evaluations alone may fail to capture important differences in outcome dispersion across circumstance groups, underscoring the value of a variance-based approach for the analysis of equality of opportunity.
Source: Social Indicators Research
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Reduced inequalities
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,290
OpenAlex ID: W7128775826