In the last two decades, increasing inequalities in a broad range of countries have prompted many scholars to consider inequality as the main cause for social unrest, weakened institutions or people's disaffection toward democracy. However, this interpretation often relies on fragile theoretical foundations and conceptual ambiguity.

To clarify these possible correlations, the present volume focuses on Latin America as a region characterized by persistently high level of inequality. It aims to:

• Disentangle the different meanings of inequality, taking into account that it is a complex phenomenon whose measure depends on the variables adopted to measure distributive asymmetries;
• Consider the complex of internal and external factors that impact distributive patterns, including those related to institutional arrangements and bargain power among different social actors;
• Examine the main effects of inequality, particularly on social services and subjective wellbeing, violence and insecurity, as well as institutional weakening;
• Finally, evaluate the effectiveness of different policies against inequality, the design of welfare systems, the pre-distributive and redistributive impacts of fiscal measures, and the creation of a culture of tolerance about inequality.