The Spatial Mismatch Hypothesis, Perceived Labor Market Opportunities, and the Moderating Role of Public Infrastructure

• In Event: 30816 - Space and Place

Abstract

The spatial mismatch hypothesis holds that those in racial/ethnic minoritized segregated areas are spatially disadvantaged in the labor market, especially in the post-war era of suburbanization. This is because the geographic location of work favors White communities in the suburbs over inner-city minoritized areas. Using the Kinder Houston Area Survey (KHAS) data at the individual-level and several tract-level datasets on neighborhoods, we extend this line of research to the case of perceived labor market insecurity using Houston, Texas as a testbed for these associations. We find both individual-level race/ethnicity and clustering by race across neighborhoods are associated with poorer labor market evaluations. Racial/ethnic minoritized individuals report poorer perceptions of the local labor market than their White counterparts, and regardless of race, those in disproportionately Black neighborhoods independently express greater perceived labor market insecurity. Job accessibility by public transportation and walking infrastructure moderates these neighborhood effects by weakening the association between Black clustering and perceived labor market insecurity. Consequently, one way to contend with spatial labor market inequality is through investment in public transportation and mobility infrastructure.

Authors

• Kathryn Freeman Anderson, University of Houston

• Scott V. Savage, University of Houston