Vanheuvelen

Tom VanHeuvelen

Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Chapter Member: Minneapolis-St. Paul SSN
Areas of Expertise:

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(217) 300-2908

About Tom

VanHeuvelen's research interests are broadly in the areas of inequality, stratification, quantitative methodology, political sociology, the sociology of development, and historical/comparative sociology.

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | In the News | Publications

Contributions

How Strong U.S. Labor Organizations Once Boosted Wages and Limited Economic Inequality — and Could Do so Again

Key Findings Brief,

Publications

"Recovering the Missing Middle: A Mesocomparative Analysis of Within-Group Inequality, 1970-2011" American Journal of Sociology 123, no. 4 (2018).

Examines inequality occurring among seemingly similar individuals across local labor markets. Finds that changes in economic development change not only levels of inequality, but also basic distributional properties of inequality. 

"Moral Economies or Hidden Talents? A Longitudinal Analysis of Union Decline and Wage Inequality, 1973-2015" Social Forces (2018).

Examines the multiple pathways that link the decline of labor unions in the United States and the rise of wage inequality. Finds that the decline of labor unions has had broad impacts, depressing wage trajectories and increasing economic volatility in worker careers.

"Unequal Views of Inequality: Cross-National Support for Redistribution 1985-2011" Social Science Research 64 (2017): 43-66.

Examines where, and when, public attitudes towards inequality change using a large sample of countries and years. Finds that economic growth tends to reduce public support for government action towards inequality, while publics tend to become more supportive following government redistribution.