Concentration or diffusion? Exploring the emerging spatial dynamics of poverty distribution in Southern California

Abstract

While urban poverty has been known to be spatially concentrated in inner city areas for a long time, the degree of poverty concentration has declined substantially since the 1990s, whereas poverty has increasingly expanded to suburban areas to which relatively little attention has been paid. This study examines how poverty distribution has changed in the Los Angeles-Long Beach Combined Statistical Area and why. More specifically, an investigation is made to capture the detailed changes of poverty rates in over three thousand census tracts over the last two decades and to identify the major forces behind these spatiotemporal changes by employing spatial regression models. Results show that high poverty areas have stretched over space, not in a way that expands their overall size but in a way that increases the degree of spatial fragmentation throughout the last two decades. The results also reveal that neighborhood poverty change is largely shaped by wealth clustering and other spatially-explicit processes.

A regional geography of gentrification, displacement, and the suburbanisation of poverty: Towards an extended research agenda

“…Previous work has shown the suburbanisation of poverty to have an overall de-segregating effect (Bailey & Minton, 2018) as poor populations are pushed into previously middle-class suburbs. Yet, new clusters of poverty may still emerge (Tong & Kim, 2019) and overall spatial inequalities may increase (Hochstenbach & Arundel, 2020). A key question then is whether potential reductions in segregation are structural or temporary as class maps are redrawn, and whether these reductions actually amount to greater spatial equity and opportunities.…”

Socioeconomic and environmental factors of poverty in China using geographically weighted random forest regression model

“…The COVID-19 crisis posed a huge challenge to global economic and social development, especially for developing countries, which could push half a billion people into poverty (Sumner et al 2020). Previous studies (M. Tong et al 2019;Zandi et al 2019) showed the spatial distribution of poverty and its driver factors including environmental and socio-economic factors, etc. are uneven.…”

Announcement effects of urban regeneration plans on residential property values: Evidence from Ulsan, Korea

“…Even though government-led urban regeneration projects seek incremental revitalization of the communities, this goal cannot be successfully achieved without a proper strategy for mitigating potential adverse consequences early in the process. It is also needed to work with other communities or jurisdictions to support relocations, when appropriate, and deal with possible spillover effects (see e.g., Oakley & Tsao, 2007;Tong & Kim, 2019).…”