INEQUALITY: CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES In the United States, the land of equal opportunity, you might be surprised to find great economic disparity. Research on the topic was not extensive until rising economic disparities over the past three decades caught researchers' attention. This research would reveal that economic inequality is not just a random conclusion, but that legitimate causes and patterns of these causes could be traced. It would also discover the consequences that economic inequality has had on social and political life. The research has not only focused on economic inequality in America but also globally, researchers have also greatly expanded the literature regarding economic disparities with the hope of raising people's consciousness and penetrating to the heart of the social problem of economic inequality that many are faced with (Neckerman, Torch 2007). Economic inequality has been on the rise in America for more than two decades. This socially divisive trend emerged from the stagnant economy of the 1970s and continued through the boom of the 1980s, when rising tides clearly failed to raise all ships. Instead, growing inequality in both individual earnings and family income has widened the gap between rich and poor and led to the much-publicized decline of the middle class (Gottschalk, P. (1993). I believe that economic inequality is simply a social problem Because of the self-explanatory definition of economic inequality when things are unequal it almost always leads to negative consequences and things appear to be unfair healthcare and, more importantly, will face poor educational opportunities..... . half of the paper ...... because of interdisciplinary inquiry into inequality The Russell Sage Foundation's inequality research program builds on what sociologists can do to However, sociologists can make a distinctive contribution by leveraging disciplinary strength Over the past two decades, much research has been conducted on the patterns and causes of inequality (Neckerman and Torche 2007). The consequences on individuals' perception and interpretation of inequality are mediated by the institutions of social relations and the cultural context. Sociologists can advance research on inequality by bringing disciplinary expertise not only on the organization and political economy of businesses and labor markets, but also on the pathways through which inequality has effects and on the robust political and cultural contingencies that might modify these effects. Neckerman and Torch 2007).