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COUNTY‐LEVEL DETERMINANTS OF SOCIAL DISTANCING (OR LACK THEREOF) DURING THE COVID‐19 PANDEMIC
Author(s) -
Baradaran Motie Golnaz,
Biolsi Christopher
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
contemporary economic policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.454
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1465-7287
pISSN - 1074-3529
DOI - 10.1111/coep.12499
Subject(s) - social distance , pandemic , socioeconomic status , demographic economics , covid-19 , institution , population , politics , social mobility , demography , development economics , socioeconomics , economic growth , economics , geography , political science , sociology , medicine , social science , disease , law , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty)
We study the relationship between a number of socioeconomic, demographic, and political variables and county‐level measures of social mobility in the early stages of the COVID‐19 pandemic in the United States. We find that higher income, more educated populations, older populations, a higher share of Asian residents, a higher share of residents in a formal religious institution, and the early presence of the virus all significantly correlate with reduced mobility. A higher share of the resident population that is Black or Hispanic or a greater vote share for Donald Trump in the 2016 election significantly predict smaller mobility declines. ( JEL R20, R23, R28)