Global Net Income Deciles for 184 Countries and 32 Regions, 1958-2015

184 countries and 32 aggregated geographical regions are covered by this dataset on net income distribution from 1958 to 2015. It was created by Kanishka B. Narayan of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to provide a consistent time series for income inequality analysis. The data combines observed values with imputed values based on summary measures like the GINI coefficient.

Use Cases

• Analyzing trends in within-country income inequality based on the consistent net-income concept.
• Comparing cross-country income distribution patterns across the 32 aggregated geographical regions.
• Modeling the impact of policy on inequality using the imputed time series from 1958 to 2015.
• Studying the contribution of within-country and cross-country inequality to regional aggregates.

Strengths

• Covers a long time series spanning 58 years from 1958 to 2015.
• Provides data for 184 countries and aggregated values for 32 geographical regions and the world.
• Uses a consistent net-income concept and imputation method to enhance comparability.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Kanishka B. Narayan, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Collection Method

Combines observed survey data with values imputed from summary measures using a PCA-based approach.

Time Range

1958-2015

Geography

184 countries, aggregated to 32 geographical regions and the world