Final answer:
Measuring income inequality by dividing the population into quintiles is not a good reflection of the degree of income inequality in a country due to oversimplification, exclusion of top earners, and lack of detail about the middle class.
Step-by-step explanation:
Measuring income inequality by dividing the population into quintiles is not a good reflection of the degree of income inequality in a country for several reasons:
- It oversimplifies income distribution: Dividing the population into five equal groups does not capture the full complexity of income distribution. It fails to consider the concentration of income within each quintile.
- It ignores the top earners: Quintiles focus only on the distribution among the bottom 80% of the population, neglecting the income inequality among the top 20%.
- It lacks information on the middle class: Quintiles do not provide detailed information about income distribution within the middle class, which is an important indicator of economic well-being.