Connecting Across the Divides of Race/Ethnicity: How Does Segregation Matter?

There exists an active discussion as to the effects of racial/ethnic composition on community connection. Research has suggested that racial segregation is beneficial to one’s community connection. To explore this dynamic, we investigate how an individual’s community connection is determined by the racial/ethnic segregation of his or her neighborhood, among other independent variables. We implement multilevel models using individual data from the 2008 and 2010 Public Health Management Corporation’s Southeastern Pennsylvania Household Health Survey and tract data from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey. We find that though the overall socioeconomic status of a neighborhood explains much of the variations in community connection, non-Hispanic Blacks living in predominantly White or mixed communities tend to have a weaker community connection than their counterparts in other types of neighborhood. This demonstrates that segregation and socioeconomic status explain community connection.