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What Data on Older Households Tell Us About Wealth Inequality and Entrepreneurship Growth
(2015)
  • Christian E Weller, University of Massachusetts Boston
  • Jeffrey B Wenger
  • Benyamin Lichtenstein, University of Massachusetts Boston
  • Carolyn Arcand, University of New Hampshire - Main Campus
Abstract

The data analysis for this report, while focusing on older households, tells an interesting story about the potential link between entrepreneurship and wealth inequality that is relevant for economic policy more broadly. Rising wealth among a subset of higher-income households gave those households the opportunity to pursue entrepreneurial activities that otherwise would not have existed. Older households pursued these activities to generate streams of income that were unrelated to risky business income and because they could use their wealth as collateral. Policymakers interested in promoting increased entrepreneurship among older households—where economic pressures have been very noticeable—could consequently pursue two separate but not mutually exclusive paths: They could find ways to build wealth on a broader base than has been the case in the past, especially by emphasizing asset building among people of color, single women, and younger households, and they could develop ways for older households interested in pursuing entrepreneurship to diversify their incomes.

Publication Date
Spring May 27, 2015
Comments
This material [article] was published by the Center for American Progress
Citation Information
Christian E Weller, Jeffrey B Wenger, Benyamin Lichtenstein and Carolyn Arcand. "What Data on Older Households Tell Us About Wealth Inequality and Entrepreneurship Growth" (2015)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/christian_weller/18/