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University of Wisconsin–Madison
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty

Tag: PEW Economic Mobility Project

Economic Mobility in the US

  • Getting unstuck: Why some people get out of poverty and others don’t, By Michael De Groote, November 10, 2013, Deseret News: “Call it rags to rags. While many Americans believe the poor can rise up from the bottom, the statistics show otherwise. New research by Pew’s Economic Mobility Project shows that 70 percent of those who are born in the bottom fifth never climb the economic ladder. ‘One of the hallmarks of the American Dream is the belief that anyone who works hard and plays by the rules can achieve economic success,’ says Diana Elliott, who manages Pew’s research on economic mobility. While that dream may seem no longer in reach for the poorest Americans, some do move up, Elliott says…”
  • Here’s who moves up the economic ladder, By Allison Linn, November 8, 2013, CNBC: “Want to move up the economic ladder? Go to college, find a spouse who works and try to avoid getting laid off. College graduates, people in dual-earner families, whites and those lucky enough to escape a bout of unemployment are also the most likely to move from the bottom fifth of the income ladder to at least the middle, according to a new Pew Charitable Trusts analysis of family income trends…”

Economic Mobility

Economic mobility: Who gets left behind, By Tami Luhby, July 10, 2012, CNN Money: “Most Americans make more than their parents did, but that doesn’t mean they’re all moving up the economic ladder. Some 84% of Americans have higher family incomes than their parents had at the same age, according to a new report from the Pew Economic Mobility Project. And 93% of those who grew up in the poorest fifth of the income ladder exceed their parents’ family income as adults. But out-earning their parents hasn’t helped many of them climb out of poverty, as many poor American families remain stuck at the bottom of the income barrel. Some 43% remain in the lowest quintile. . .”