The Impacts of Neighborhood Poverty Deconcentration Efforts on Low-Income Children's and Adolescents' Well-Being

Abstract:Large numbers of poor, primarily minority, children reside in poverty-concentrated neighborhoods (i.e., neighborhoods where at least 20 percent of residents are poor). Emerging evidence documents the deleterious impact of neighborhood poverty on children's and adolescents' well-being. This paper summarizes research on trends in neighborhood poverty, extant policies to remedy concentrated poverty, and results from experimental programs that have implemented such policies on low-income, minority families. As a supplement to the limited experimental work on neighborhood poverty deconcentration efforts, this paper reviews research examining school desegregation and residential mobility on children's well-being—two parallel shifts in children's lives. Potential mechanisms or pathways of neighborhood deconcentration efforts on children's and adolescents' outcomes including housing quality, neighborhood characteristics (e.g., resources, violence and disorder), family factors, and social networks and ties are also reviewed. The paper concludes with a synthesis and policy recommendations.