causal

Closing Connectedness Gap Raises Income 20%

If low-income kids grew up in neighborhoods with the level of economic connectedness that the average high-income kid experiences—closing the connectedness gap by moving them to comparable neighborhoods—their adult incomes would increase by about 20%; a sizable effect, comparable to two-to-three years of college at a 7-10% annual return to education, though not a silver bullet.

causalpending

Speaker

Raj Chetty

Evidence Quote

if you close the gap in connectedness between low and high-income kids by moving them to comparable neighborhoods, the incomes of low-income kids would increase by about 20%.

Source

Raj Chetty on Economic MobilityEconTalk
Created: 6/13/2026, 3:35:10 AM

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