THE ROLE OF ECONOMIC INEQUALITY IN HINDERING SDG PROGRESS: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW THROUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVE LENS

Abstract

This paper explores the various ways in which perceived economic inequality has been hindering promotion of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) specifically its social and psychological consequences. This study will be different in terms of viewing economic inequality in terms of subjective views of inequality and its impacts on community engagement, institutional trust, and psychological well-being (as they are main avenues that support inclusive and sustainable development). The research synthesizes the results of more than 60 peer-reviewed articles on an international scale based on a systematic literature review methodology. The scan indicates a coherent tendency: people, who identify themselves as economically peripheral, have low chance to engage themselves in civic or community development. This detachment undermines participatory governance systems that are critical in implementing SDGs in a bottom-up manner. Moreover, economic inequity is also a major undermining factor of trust in institutions, particularly, when societies place firms on the lower end of institutions. Institutional distrust poses threats to adherence to the development policies, engenders minimal participation by the people and encourages political disappointment. The paper arrives at the conclusion that a solution to the problem of economic inequality cannot be considered only with the redistributive framework but rather with the conception of strategies that can bring back social trust, lead to inclusion, and also provide psychological empowerment to the individuals. To make the development sustainable, it has to be economically just and socially inclusive to make the SDGs practical. The results raise awareness of how integrated strategies should reflect on social, emotional, and economic realities of inequality in policymaking sustainable development.