Scientists discover envy. Not sure if it's bad or not.

European Psychologists discovered that even when everyone gets the same percentage raise, it still generates envy and resentment among the lower comped against the higher paid.  In other research news it was discovered that looking at naked teenage girls made men lust and that housewives will always take the two for one deal even if it makes the shopkeeper happier if she doesn't.

Abstract

Most research on income inequality implicitly assumes that a fixed percentage increase in income across all income levels does not alter income inequality. In contrast with this assumption, we show that relative increases in income lead to increased perceptions of inequality, even when buying power is held constant. In a second experiment, we extended these findings using a fictitious currency, thereby eliminating effects of using a familiar currency. In study 3, we demonstrate that feelings of envy and fairness are affected by a fixed percentage income increase.

Corresponding author. Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Department of Marketing, Tweekerkenstraat 2, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium. Tel.: +32 9 264 35 28; fax: +32 9 264 42 79.

Copyright © 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Note that the boffin that did this remarkable piece of Old Testament 'research' has his offices on Tweekerkenstraat.  Indeed.