However, with the onset, and lasting effects, of the recent global financial and economic crisis, greater attention is being given to the negative long-term impact of rising inequality, and to the role of fiscal and social policy in shaping and curbing these effects. Berg and Ostry (2011) examined the relationship between income inequality and economic growth across 174 countries, to reveal that income inequality was a strong determinant of the quality of growth, even when market structure and other institutional factors were taken into account. Countries with low levels of inequality tend to sustain high rates of growth for longer durations, while growth spurts tend to fade more quickly in more unequal countries.