ABSTRACT
Neighborhoods with high concentrations of poverty may suffer from two types of neighborhood effects: the social externalities that arise from the behavior of some residents, and the dearth of resources from outside. Various researchers have investigated the reasons for the lack of positive impact, suggesting barriers such as the significant health problems of relocatees, the lack of transportation and childcare, the failure of social support services, and the loss of social capital. In Clampet-Lundquist's study, individuals who had relied on friends or other local connections to gain employment when they lived in the pre-move public housing development did not report using the same techniques after moving to new neighborhoods. Involuntary displacement seems to have actually undermined the social capital strategies of the low-income families. In fact, more than simply not producing economic improvements for the families, dispersal may actually increase economic insecurity, which may lead to greater residential instability.
