{
  "abstract": "In previous studies, using agent-based simulations of a model of a capitalist economy proposed by Ian Wright, we showed that inequality in both wealth and income distributions is largely governed by a single key parameter: the ratio between average wealth per capita and the mean salary, denoted by $R$. This parameter captures the relative importance of accumulated assets compared with labor income. In the model, larger values of $R$ are systematically associated with higher levels of inequality, as measured by the Gini coefficient. In the present work, we investigate whether this relationship is also observed in real-world economies. Using empirical data from the World Inequality Database (WID) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), we construct empirical estimates of $R$ and compare them with standard measures of income and wealth inequality. We find a positive relation between $R$ and inequality across several empirical settings, with the strongest relationships observed for mature and advanced economies. These results provide empirical support for the role of the wealth-to-salary ratio as a simple macroscopic indicator associated with economic inequality, while also highlighting the limitations imposed by differences in data definitions and measurement across countries and periods.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.24192",
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Jhordan Silveira de Borba"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sebastian Gonçalves"
    },
    {
      "name": "Celia Anteneodo"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bzyfctyn68ayd.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.24192",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "bzyfctyn68ayd",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.24192",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "econ.GN"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "physics.soc-ph"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "q-fin.EC"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3312|Income, Poverty, and Inequality"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223028147",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.24192",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-16",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bzyfctyn68ayd.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:30:52Z",
      "native_id": "2610.24192",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.24192"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:physics.soc-ph",
      "subfield": "statistical-nonlinear"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The wealth-to-salary ratio: a simple indicator of inequality",
  "title_text": "The wealth-to-salary ratio: a simple indicator of inequality",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:33:41Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bzyfctyn68ayd",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}