Parametric families for the Lorenz curve: an analysis of income distribution in the European countries

We investigate differences and similarities of income distribution among European countries on the basis of the Lorenz curve (LC). By performing an empirical analysis, we compare different parametric models for the LC, namely, the power LC, the Lamè LC and a generalized biparametric version of the Lamè LC. In particular, besides focusing on the goodness-of-fit, we concern about the effectiveness of multi-parametric models in identifying situations of intersecting LCs.