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Home | Events Archive | Inequality is Rising where Social Network Segregation Interacts with Urban Topology
Seminar

Inequality is Rising where Social Network Segregation Interacts with Urban Topology


  • Series
  • Speaker(s)
    Balázs Lengyel (ELKH Centre for Economic and Regional Studies and Corvinus University of Budapest, Hungary)
  • Field
    Spatial Economics
  • Location
    Online
  • Date and time

    September 16, 2021
    14:00 - 15:00

If you are interested in joining the seminar, please send an email to Hedda Werkman.

Abstract
Social networks amplify inequalities by fundamental mechanisms of social tie formation such as homophily and triadic closure. These forces sharpen social segregation, which is reflected in fragmented social network structure. Geographical impediments such as distance and physical or administrative boundaries also reinforce social segregation. Yet, less is known about the joint relationships between social network structure, urban geography, and inequality. In this paper we analyze an online social network and find that the fragmentation of social networks is significantly higher in towns in which residential neighborhoods are divided by physical barriers such as rivers and railroads. Towns in which neighborhoods are relatively distant from the center of town and amenities are spatially concentrated are also more socially segregated. Using a two-stage model, we show that these urban geography features have significant relationships with income inequality via social network fragmentation. In other words, the geographic features of a place can compound economic inequalities via social networks. Joint paper with Gergő Tóth, Johannes Wachs, Riccardo Di Clemente, Ákos Jakobi, Bence Ságvári, and János Kertész.

Read full paper here.