TEENAGE EMPLOYMENT AND THE SPATIAL ISOLATION OF MINORITY AND POVERTY HOUSEHOLDS

This paper tests the importance of the spatial isolation of minority a nd poverty households for youth employment in large metropolitan areas . We estimate a model relating youth employment probabilities to indiv idual and family characteristics, race, and metropolitan location. We then investigate the determinants of the systematic differences in emp loyment probabilities by race and metropolitan area, A substantial fra ction of differences in youth employment can be attributed to the isol ation of minorities and poor households. Minority youth residing in mo re segregated cities or cities in which minorities have less contact w ith nonpoor households have lower employment probabilities than otherw ise comparable youth. Simulations suggest that these spatial effects e xplain a substantial fraction of the existing differences in youth emp loyment rates by race.