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Source: Sociological Review
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Massoglia, Michael
Firebaugh, Glenn
Warner, Cody
Racial Variation in the Effect of Incarceration on Neighborhood Attainment
American Sociological Review 78,1 (February 2013): 142-165.
Also: http://asr.sagepub.com/content/78/1/142.abstract
Cohort(s): NLSY79
Publisher: Sage Publications
Keyword(s): Geocoded Data; Incarceration/Jail; Neighborhood Effects; Racial Differences; Residence

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

Each year, more than 700,000 convicted offenders are released from prison and reenter neighborhoods across the country. Prior studies have found that minority ex-inmates tend to reside in more disadvantaged neighborhoods than do white ex-inmates. However, because these studies do not control for pre-prison neighborhood conditions, we do not know how much (if any) of this racial variation is due to arrest and incarceration, or if these observed findings simply reflect existing racial residential inequality. Using a nationally representative dataset that tracks individuals over time, we find that only whites live in significantly more disadvantaged neighborhoods after prison than prior to prison. Blacks and Hispanics do not, nor do all groups (whites, blacks, and Hispanics) as a whole live in worse neighborhoods after prison. We attribute this racial variation in the effect of incarceration to the high degree of racial neighborhood inequality in the United States: because white offenders generally come from much better neighborhoods, they have much more to lose from a prison spell. In addition to advancing our understanding of the social consequences of the expansion of the prison population, these findings demonstrate the importance of controlling for pre-prison characteristics when investigating the effects of incarceration on residential outcomes.
Bibliography Citation
Massoglia, Michael, Glenn Firebaugh and Cody Warner. "Racial Variation in the Effect of Incarceration on Neighborhood Attainment." American Sociological Review 78,1 (February 2013): 142-165.