Neighborhood Effects Examined Through the Lens of Residential Mobility Programs

Although researchers have consistently found that neighborhoods matter, relatively little is known about the processes through which neighborhood-level characteristics influence individual outcomes, and whether interventions targeting improving neighborhood characteristics will be beneficial for children. I examine whether relocating from high- to low-poverty neighborhoods affected low-income Black children's exposure to promotive developmental experiences. Participating families voluntarily relocated from high-poverty, minority segregated, inner-city Chicago neighborhoods to mostly White, low-poverty, suburban and Chicago neighborhoods. Data come from retrospective qualitative interviews with 22 Gautreaux One families an average of 15 years after initial relocation, and from interviews with 43 Gautreaux Two families as they relocated into their new communities. I find that children primarily benefited from the institutional versus the social interaction resources in their new neighborhoods. Furthermore, suburban placement was key in facilitating children's access to higher quality resources.