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The following is a book which readers of this list might find of interest.  
For more information please visit 
http://mitpress.mit.edu/promotions/books/TANNHF97

Income Distribution and High-Quality Growth
edited by Vito Tanzi and Ke-young Chu

The contrast is vivid. While the majority of people in the industrial world 
and some in the developing world enjoy unprecedented affluence, a far 
greater number of people in the low-income countries live in abject 
poverty. Although several developing countries are achieving rapid 
economic growth and poverty reduction, most formerly centrally planned 
countries are struggling to implement market-oriented reforms in the 
midst of economic deterioration and rising poverty. The paramount 
importance of reducing poverty worldwide is forcing economists and 
policymakers to look at how income distribution and economic growth 
interact.

The essays in this volume grew out of a 1995 conference sponsored by the 
International Monetary Fund. The contributors are scholars and 
policymakers from academic institutions, governments, and international 
organizations. The questions discussed include: How does income 
distribution interact with economic growth in the short run and the long 
run? To what extent can government use transfer programs to increase the 
incomes of the poor? How can government use social programs to help the 
poor increase their income-earning capacity? Does distributional 
inequality create an obstacle to long-term poverty reduction? 
Alternatively, is distributional inequality a necessary means of achieving 
economic growth? Generally, the contributors agree that there need not be 
a trade-off between growth and equity in the long run. However, attempts 
by government to influence income distribution through large-scale tax 
and transfer programs can have a negative impact on growth.

January 1998
484 pp. 
ISBN 0-262-20109-7 
MIT Press * 5 Cambridge Center * Cambridge, MA  02142 * 
(617)625-8569