Decomposing changes in the geography of metropolitan inequality

ABSTRACT

The geography of economic opportunity and residential segregation are important factors driving racial disparities in employment outcomes. We present here the changing landscape of opportunity in large metropolitan areas in the United States to describe how the spatial structure of opportunity is evolving. Using decomposable inequality indices, we break down the spatial inequality of opportunity into two components: inequality within subareas (inner cities, inner suburbs, and outer suburbs) and inequality between subareas. According to our findings, economic opportunity is primarily driven by inequality within subareas. The situation is particularly evident in metropolitan areas where suburban employment is growing concurrently with the suburbanization of Black and Hispanic populations. Our findings suggest that the geography of metropolitan opportunity in the U.S. is changing in ways that will alter our traditional understanding of the relationship between race, space, and economic opportunity.

KEYWORDS:

• Urban inequality
• spatial mismatch
• suburbanization
• suburban inequality
• segregation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Hyunjoo Eom

Dr. Hyunjoo Eom is a post-doctoral researcher at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea. She is also a visiting research Fellow at the Lee Kwan Yew Centre for Innovative Cities at the Singapore University of Technology and Design. Her research interests include the spatial segregation, inequality, geography of opportunity, land use and travel behavior.

Casey J. Dawkins

Dr. Casey J. Dawkins is a Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and a Research Associate with the National Center for Smart Growth. Prior to joining the University of Maryland, Dr. Dawkins was an Associate Professor of Urban Affairs and Planning, Director of the Metropolitan Institute, Director of the Center for Housing Research, and Editor of the journal Housing Policy Debate at Virginia Tech.