Income Levels & Spending Choices

This research examines the relationships between income levels, consumer spending choices, and quality of line in the United States for the 20-year period 1978-1997. Income levels are defined for purposes of this research as per capita income as reported by the United States Department of Commerce. Consumer spending choices are considered within the contexts of retail sales, durable goods sales, consumer spending on health care, and housing (Nissan, 1994). Quality of life is considered within the contexts of all criminal offenses, violent criminal offenses, bankruptcies, inflation, and formal educational attainment (Kacapyr, 1997).

Per Capita Income in the United States: 1978-1997

Per capita income may be considered in terms of either current dollars or constant dollars. When per capita income is considered within the context of constant dollars, current dollar income levels are adjusted for the effects of inflation (Johnston, 1996). From 1978 through 1997, per capita income in current dollars in the United States increased from $9,640 to $25,312, an increase of 162.6 percent over the 20-year period. When these income levels are adjusted for inflation (using 1992 as the base year), however, per capita income stated in constant dollars increased from $17,995 in 1978 to $22,350 in 1997, an increase of only 25.6 percent over the 20-year period.

A comparison of per capita income sta

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95). Second, health care is a high priority in the United States. Thus, spending likely will be curtailed in other areas before health care spending is curtailed.
Source: Economics and Statistics Administration, 1998. Housing Housing expenditures, for purposes of this research were measured within the context of new housing starts. The relationship between the levels of new housing starts in the United States and per capita income stated in constant dollars is presented in Chart 5, which may be found on the following page. As the chart indicates, variations in new housing starts are responsive to variations in per capita income as stated in constant dollars. During both the economic recession of 1980-1982 and the economic recession of 1990-1992, new housing starts declined substantially.
Source: Economics and Statistics Administration, 1998. All Criminal Offenses Crime levels are a measure of quality of life as most people in the United States perceive the meaning of the term "quality of life" (Heubusch, 1998). As the rate of criminal offenses increases, people tend to feel that the quality of life has decreased (Boyer & Savageau, 1985). The relationship between the level of all criminal offenses per 100,0
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Approximate Word count = 2010
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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