The paper evaluates the processes of regional income convergence in Poland. This new research approach involves an attempt to assess the process of convergence from the point of view of development gaps. Six key development gaps were considered in the region of Eastern Poland, which is a singular case, significantly different from other regions. A dynamic panel data model was applied to investigate the impact of EU funds on the progress made towards closing these development gaps. Among the analysed development gaps, only the structural gap was not reduced in the period 2004–2015. Studies have also revealed the different impact of structural funds on each category of development gaps (a positive impact on reducing the regional transport accessibility gap and the investment gap, but negative – on reducing the innovation gap). Research has suggested the need for a change in the structure of using EU funds in the period 2014–2020 to favour stronger support for entrepreneurship and the creation of new jobs. Greater stimulation of the economic structure of peripheral regions has been proposed as the prerequisite for the future reduction in the discrepancies between regions and for the intensification of convergence.

The study investigates the redistributive effects of agricultural policy and the importance of income inequalities among agricultural holdings for sustainable agricultural development based on the intra-sectoral differences of the disposable income of farmer households and the income from family agricultural holdings in Poland in the years 2004–2018. The problem of excessive and growing income inequalities in agriculture has been recognized as an important barrier to the sustainable development of agriculture in Poland. The aim of the study is to establish a relationship between the process of income polarization in agriculture and the process of concentration of production factors in this sector, and the level of budget support. The Gini coefficient, concentration index, and multivariate regression analysis were used as research methods. It was shown that the process of the concentration of land and capital has led to an increase in income disparities in this sector. Budgetary expenditure directed to the sector in the form of subsidies supporting farmer incomes was not able to reverse the process of income polarization, but mitigated the growing inequalities (reducing the scale of income spreads).

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Aim: Deliberations of the article revolve around trends of social capital under conditions of economic crisis. Motivation: Final conclusions are based on theoretical considerations and empirical research. The latter include analysis of changes in indicators of social capital (in the cognitive, structural and behavioural dimension) in Southern European countries (Spain, Greece and Portugal) -from comparative perspective -before and after 2007. Data from European Social Survey and European Value Study were used. The example of Southern European countries shows that there can be no universal reaction scheme (in terms of social capital) on the crisis phenomena. Results: A common feature of the analyzed countries after 2007 is an increase in ties with friends (bonding social capital, however the heightened importance may not just be a consequence of the crisis, but rather part of long-term societal change -e.g. Portugal) and a reduction in institutional and systemic trust. It can be also concluded that countries well endowed in social capital (e.g. Spain), in the period of economic crisis to the greater extent employ social capital resources as a response to non-beneficial changes in the economic environment (which is illustrated by higher rates of civic and political participation).

Research background: The subject of the study is the disproportionate development of rural and urban areas in terms of human capital in the context of the convergence process. Purpose of the article: The main goal of the study is to assess the rural–urban disparities on the educational attainment of the population (adopted as a human capital proxy), based on the example of Poland. Methods: The Bray-Curtis measure of structures diversity, the Kruskal-Wallis test and regression analysis were applied to investigate the scale and dynamic of the rural–urban educational divide in Poland in the period 1988–2018. Findings & Value added: The paper emphasizes the aspect of rural–urban differences in the Polish economy and their dynamic nature. Studies have revealed that in 1988–2018, in Poland, the disparity in educational attainment between rural and urban populations was gradually reduced. This process, however, was not accompanied by the reduction of internal educational disparities in the rural space. The study results are helpful in verifying the effectiveness of public funds, allocated in recent years in order to accelerate the multi-functional development of rural areas in Poland and other CEE countries.