http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28149 Annales. Etics in Economic Life 2018, vol. 21 No.8 Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:45:33 GMT 2026-04-08T13:45:33Z https://dspace.uni.lodz.pl:443/bitstream/id/27919ee3-5db3-48c9-bb03-0d734cda99fd/ http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28149 http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28449 Is there a growing social acceptance of earnings inequalities in Poland? Kumor, Paweł In our studies, we deal with the estimating of the optimal ranges of earnings – the optimal Gini indexes which are favourable to the maximisation of GDP growth in Poland. We suspect that the optimal Gini coefficients expressing the whole of society’s acceptance of earnings inequalities can increase. In the article, we formulated a hypothesis on society’s habituation to increasing earnings disparities. We verified the hypothesis on the basis of the model of economic growth using data from 1970 to 2007. We carried out econometric studies in two stages. In the first stage, we estimated the optimal Gini coefficients for short subsequent sub-periods. In the second stage, we studied the character of changes in the optimal Gini coefficients. In the studies, we proved the hypothesis on society’s habituation to increasing earnings disparities. The optimal Gini coefficients increase along with the increase of differences in earnings and the increase of the economic level per capita. The growth of the optimal Gini coefficients may be slowed down. Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28449 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28451 Family and economic growth in Poland. New estimation results Sztaudynger, Jan Jacek Economic growth is mostly explained by investments and employment growth. Since the mid-1990s various social categories have been introduced into the economic growth analysis, such as trust, crime and income inequality, etc. According to sociology and psychology, it is the family that constitutes interpersonal relationships and is an indicator of happiness and quality of life. It can be said that happy people better fulfil their social roles and also work better. We put forward the hypothesis that family ties have an influence on economic growth. More precisely: the more divorces (relative to existing marriages) there are, the slower economic growth is. This hypothesis was confirmed in an analysis of Poland’s economy in the years 1995–2017. Due to the disintegration of family ties measured by the divorce rate, Poland’s annual economic growth was slowed by about a 1 percentage point on average. This estimation is based on the productivity (GDP to labor ratio) growth model which, along with the divorce rate, also includes the investment and new marriage rates. Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28451 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28450 Economic growth and the optimal inequality of income Sztaudynger, Jan Jacek Inequality of income is one of the significant factors forming social capital. Two views dominate among economists dealing with the influence of income inequality on economic growth. On the one hand, a too low level of income inequality does not motivate people to increase their labour productivity. Low inequality of income might result from an extended social care system and a GDP burdened with social transfers. A good example may be a situation when an unemployed person refuses to accept a job offer and prefers unemployment benefits to a slightly higher salary. Moreover, a lack of incentives for an employee who fails to acknowledge the economic sense of increasing the productivity of his or her work might lead to a slower growth of the economy. On the other hand, a contrary view suggests that an increase in inequality of income has a negative impact on the economy. The accumulation of wealth by a small number of citizens raises doubts about the good use of that wealth for the investments necessary for the growth of the economy. Excessive inequality of income is confronted with the disapproval of a significant part of society and is regarded as unfair and unjustified. It may also increase the crime rate, decrease trust and, more generally, lead to the weakening of social capital. The arguments presented above lead to the hypothesis that the influence of income inequality on the growth of the economy has a non-linear, parabolic character. We have confirmed this hypothesis in growth models of the US and Swedish economies. We assess the historically optimal inequality of income measured by the Gini coefficient at 46% and 24% for the US and Sweden, respectively. The optimal inequality of income for Poland was assessed previously at 29%. The dissimilarities may result from differences in culture, society, educational level and diligence. Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28450 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28447 Ethical problems at work in the opinion of employees of selected banks Rogowski, Robert The paper presents ethical problems faced by the employees of selected banks in Poland. The theoretical section of the paper describes the codes of ethics in banking, especially those concerning the moral aspects of working in banking. The empirical part of the paper presents the results of research on the ethos of bank workers. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were carried out using a special Internet forum devoted to the banking sector. The study includes a content analysis of comments posted by the bank employees on the Internet forum. Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/28447 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z