Dynamics of Social Diversity
E. Ben-Naim and S. Redner
We introduce and solve analytically a model for the development of
disparate social classes in a competitive population. Individuals
advance their fitness by competing against those in lower classes, and
in parallel, individuals decline due to inactivity. We find a phase
transition from a homogeneous, single-class society to a hierarchical,
multi-class society. In the latter case, a finite fraction of the
population still belongs to the lower class, and the rest of the
population is in the middle class, on top of which lies a tiny upper
class. While the lower class is static and poor, the middle class is
upwardly mobile.
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