The socioeconomic conditions of neighborhoods and school systems affect people’s health, education, and employment outcomes. Communities with higher levels of class-based segregation suffer from lower levels of economic stability and health, which can erode people’s sense of power and autonomy and feelings of belonging.
Evidence on the Relationship between Economic Inclusion and Upward Mobility Outcomes
As of December 2021, researchers have documented the following connections between this predictor and upward mobility. Asterisk (*) indicates primary reference.
- The concentration of poverty leads to the concentration of socioeconomic circumstances associated with poverty, including an increase in teenage pregnancy, male joblessness, single motherhood, and the odds that a student drops out of high school (Massey, Gross, and Shibuya 1994).
- Growing income inequality and socioeconomic segregation have led to increased segregation across friendship and romantic networks, residential neighborhoods, K–12 and university education, workplaces, and the labor market. Over the past 50 years, segregation along the lines of education, income, and class have all grown (Mijs and Roe 2021).
- As of 2017, 40 percent of all low-income children attend schools with poverty rates at 75 percent or higher (Boser and Baffour 2017).
- Mayer (2002)* finds that increased economic segregation exacerbates differences in educational attainment between high- and low-income children. Greater economic inequality between neighborhoods (at the census-tract level) reduces the educational attainment of low-income children.
- The socioeconomic composition of schools affects high school graduation and college enrollment. Palardy (2013) remarks, “Controlling for an array of student and school factors, students who attend high socioeconomic composition (SEC) schools are 68% more likely to enroll at a 4-year college than students who attend low SEC schools. The association between SEC and attainment is due more to peer influences, which tend to be negative in the low SEC setting.… School practices that emphasize academics also play a major role, particularly in mediating the relationship between SEC and 4-year college enrollment. These findings suggest that integrating schools is likely necessary to fully address the negative consequences of attending a low SEC school” (746–47).
- A 2015 paper using data from the Moving to Opportunity study showed that moving low-income households to neighborhoods of higher socioeconomic status improved college attendance and earnings for individuals who were young at the time of the move. As adults, they were more likely to live in better neighborhoods and less likely to become single parents (Chetty, Hendren, and Katz 2016).
- The income level of a child’s neighborhood affects their adult economic outcomes, as “every extra year a child spends growing up in an area where permanent residents’ incomes are higher increases his or her [adult] income” (Chetty and Hendren 2018, 1160).
- The spatial separation of high and low socioeconomic status individuals and families produces a geographic mismatch between the demand for jobs and those looking for employment. This contributes to high unemployment in neighborhoods of low socioeconomic status (Mouw 2000).
- Research using data from the Moving to Opportunity study shows that adults’ physical and mental health (subjective well-being) improves after moving to neighborhoods of higher socioeconomic status (Ludwig et al. 2013).
- As a consequence of residential segregation and concentrated poverty, children from families of low socioeconomic status are exposed to higher rates of crime and environmental hazards as well as limited access to health services, which predicts worse adult health outcomes (Fiscella and Williams 2004).
Promising Local Policy Interventions
Research from both Urban and others in the field suggests the following policies could help communities improve this predictor. These suggestions are not exhaustive, and communities should work with residents and leaders to identify solutions that are best suited to their local contexts.
- Expanding affordable housing in resource-rich neighborhoods. (This may also improve the Racial Diversity predictor.)
- Supporting community development in high-poverty neighborhoods, including by addressing vacancy and blight; and investing in schools, transportation, and job creation. (This may also improve the Safety from Crime, Transportation Access, and Employment Opportunities predictors.)
- Balancing community development with creating opportunities for residents with low incomes to move to more resource-rich communities.
- Enforcing fair housing laws. (This may also improve the Racial Diversity predictor.)
Mobility Dimensions Engaged
- Economic success
- Power and autonomy
- Dignity and belonging