Stephen Jenkins

Professor Stephen Jenkins is a leading expert in Economic and Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) since 2011, with a focus on inequality, poverty dynamics, and applied econometrics. He has held leadership roles including Head of the Department of Social Policy (2016-2019, 2023-2024) and coordinates the Global Inequalities Observatory at LSE’s International Inequalities Institute.

• Education:
  • BSc in Economics, University of Otago (1974-1977)
  • PhD in Economics, University of York (1983)

His research interests span:

• Analysis of income distribution, redistribution via taxation and social security
• Income mobility and poverty dynamics
• Measurement errors in survey and administrative data
• Survival analysis and limited dependent variable models

Recent research trends emphasize:

• Top-income inequality using tax and survey data
• Labour market volatility and income risk
• Policy impacts on inequality and poverty
• Statistical methods for income distribution analysis

Scientific awards and honors:

• Presidency of three major global associations: IARIW (2006-08), ECINEQ (2021-23), ESPE (1998)
• Distinguished Fellow of the New Zealand Association of Economists (2019)
• Research Fellow at IZA, Bonn (since 2000)
• Editorial leadership roles: Journal of Economic Inequality (2014-17), The Stata Journal (current)

Advising and grants:

• Supervises doctoral research in inequality, poverty, and econometrics
• Contributed to high-impact policy reports for UK DWP, OECD, and New Zealand Treasury
• REF2021 Impact Case Study: Better measurement of income inequality
• Member of scientific advisory boards for IAB, WIFO, and Motu

Labs and teams:

• Coordinator of the Global Inequalities Observatory at LSE
• Key member of LSE’s Department of Social Policy and International Inequalities Institute
• Collaborates with institutions including IZA, Motu, and IAB