--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For the three decades after WWII, incomes…" description: "\"For the three decades after WWII, incomes grew at about 3 percent a year for people up and down the income ladder, but since then most income growth ha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/robert-h-frank-16805_decades_for-the-three-decades-after-wwii-incomes_1332104.jpg" --- # For the three decades after WWII, incomes grew at about 3… ![“For the three decades after WWII, incomes grew at about 3 percent a year for people up and down the income ladder, but since then most income growth has occurred among the top quintile. And among that group, most of the income growth has occurred among the top 5 percent. The pattern repeats itself…” quote by Robert H. Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/robert-h-frank-16805_decades_for-the-three-decades-after-wwii-incomes_1332104.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/robert-h-frank-16805_decades_for-the-three-decades-after-wwii-incomes_1332104.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/robert-h-frank-16805_decades_for-the-three-decades-after-wwii-incomes_1332104.jpg) > “For the three decades after WWII, incomes grew at about 3 percent a year for people up and down the income ladder, but since then most income growth has occurred among the top quintile. And among that group, most of the income growth has occurred among the top 5 percent. The pattern repeats itself all the way up. Most of the growth among the top 5 percent has been among the top 1 percent, and most of the growth among that group has been among the top one-tenth of one percent.” [Robert H. Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-h-frank/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Economic growth has become increasingly concentrated among the richest, with each higher tier capturing a larger share of gains. **In simple terms:** Wealth is now mostly going to the very rich. Key Takeaway Recognize and address systemic inequality. Themes inequality wealth distribution economic policy Mood concerned analytical Type economic sociological When to use this quote - policy debates - academic research - public discourse - media analysis - activist campaigns Key Concepts progressive taxation social mobility wealth concentration Questions to Reflect On - How does this concentration affect social stability? - What policies could rebalance growth? A Different Perspective The data may overlook informal economies and regional variations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Income](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/income/) [Patterns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patterns/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Up and down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/up-and-down/) ## Related quotes > [If we had 3 percent growth, which is what we're trying to get to, what we're at, by the way, right now, we're trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-mulvaney/if-we-had-3-percent-growth-which-is-what-we-re-trying-to-get-to-what/) [Mick Mulvaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-mulvaney/) > [Under Obama, income growth has been confined almost entirely to those at the top of the income distribution, continuing a pattern that began under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-noah/under-obama-income-growth-has-been-confined-almost-entirely-to-those/) [Timothy Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-noah/) > [It takes about two and a half percent growth just to keep unemployment stable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/it-takes-about-two-and-a-half-percent-growth-just-to-keep/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [The reason we've been growing at 1.8 percent for the last eight, ten years, which is way below the historical average, is in large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-mulvaney/the-reason-we-ve-been-growing-at-1-8-percent-for-the-last-eight-ten/) [Mick Mulvaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-mulvaney/) > [“clustered behind national barriers, what was good for General Motors was good for America. 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