SPATIAL MISMATCH - AN EQUILIBRIUM-ANALYSIS

The spatial mismatch hypothesis, first stated by Kain (1968) argues th at job decentralization in US cities has contributed to low incomes an d high unemployment rates for black Americans. Decentralization reloca tes job sites to white suburban communities far from the CBD, and hous ing segregation prevents blacks from relocating their residences near the new workplaces. The purpose of the paper is to analyze an urban eq uilibrium with spatial mismatch. Despite the existence of a suburban e mployment center, blacks in the model are forced to live in the centra l zone they occupied in the original monocentric city, commuting acros s the white residential area to access suburban jobs. This 'mismatch' equilibrium is contrasted with an unrestricted equilibrium where black s are free to locate wherever they choose. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B .V.