The geography of economic segregation: How social outcomes vary relative to the geography of concentrations of poverty and high -income in the United States

This dissertation examined how social outcomes relate to the geographic patterns of economic segregation in metropolitan statistical areas of the United States. The design of this project involved collection and analysis of geographic and demographic data across a sample of Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA's). U.S. Census data were used to analyze the spatial relationships between areas with a concentration of households in poverty and areas with a concentration of households with high-incomes. Data on nine widely accepted indicators of social well-being were collected at a county and MSA level from a variety of sources and statistically analyzed for patterns that correlate with geographic attributes.;The study found that the geographic attributes of areas of poverty and areas of high-income showed limited significant correlation measures with each other. However, many measures of social well-being correlated in statistically significant ways based on geographic attributes of concentrations of poverty and high-income. This was true for all three types of geographic attributes that were tested---proportion (or relative quantity), distance, and concentration magnitude.;The study concludes that issues of concentrated poverty must be seen in a metropolitan or regional context. Solutions to concentrated poverty must look further than the people and places of poverty. Furthermore, the study has suggested that it is not just the proportion or location of concentrated poverty that affects social outcomes. The spatial and geographic relationships between and among different segments of society correlated to social outcomes for the entire community. Finally, a brief examination of existing policies and programs aimed at reducing poverty were examined to suggest how the findings of this study might be taken into account in the future.