What does “per capita” suggest about distribution?

The term "per capita" refers to a measurement that expresses a value or figure on a per-person basis. This concept implies that a total quantity has been divided by the number of individuals within a group, leading to a figure that represents an equal portion for each person. In practice, when you see statistics or data presented as "per capita," it suggests that the information is being shared evenly among all individuals, thereby highlighting averages rather than total quantities.

For instance, if a country has a certain amount of income divided among its population, the per capita income indicates how much income would be allocated to each individual if the total were shared equally. This reflects the idea of equal sharing and is particularly used to facilitate comparisons across different populations or time periods by normalizing data relative to the size of the population.