Some factors affecting personal income distribution in the United States

Income distribution has well been characterized as the "point where the functioning of the economy impinges on the lives of the millions." Indeed, in the light of the basic philosophy of democracy, there is probably no other single statistical measure which so well appraises the extent to which the masses of the population are sharing in the fruits of our remarkable industrial progress. Information relating to the volume of output has been available for some time and a well-established, and, what is more important, a well-digested literature on this subject already exists. However, it is only recently, and with considerable opposition to their collection, that any extensive body of data relating to the distribution of that output among the population has begun to emerge. It is the purpose of this monograph to analyze these data, particularly those from the 1950 Census of Population with a view toward more clearly defining the factors which determine the personal distribution of income.