Canadian Income Survey (CIS)

Gini coefficient of population, index

Gini coefficient refers to a number between zero and one that measures the relative degree of inequality in the distribution of income. The coefficient would register zero (minimum inequality) for a population in which each person received exactly the same adjusted household income and it would register a coefficient of one (maximum inequality) if one person received all the adjusted household income and the rest received none. Even though a single Gini coefficient value has no simple interpretation, comparisons of the level over time or between populations are very straightforward: the higher the coefficient, the higher the inequality of the distribution.

Population refers to the total membership, based on specific characteristics, of a group of people, objects or events at a given time and within a particular geographic area.

The data for this variable are reported using the following measurements:

• Decimal number