Segregation in networks

Giorgio Fagiolo (), Marco Valente and Nicolaas Vriend

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2007, vol. 64, issue 3-4, 316-336

Abstract: Schelling [Schelling, T., 1969. Models of segregation. American Economic Review 59, 488-493; Schelling, T., 1971a. Dynamic models of segregation. Journal of Mathematical Sociology 1, 143-186; Schelling, T., 1971b. On the ecology of micromotives. The Public Interest 25, 61-98; Schelling, T., 1978. Micromotives and Macrobehavior. W.W. Norton and Company, New York] considered a model with individual agents who only care about the types of people living in their own local neighborhood. The spatial structure was represented by a one- or two-dimensional lattice. Schelling showed that an integrated society will generally unravel into a rather segregated one even though no individual agent strictly prefers this. We generalize this spatial proximity model to a proximity model of segregation, examining models with individual agents who interact 'locally' in a range of more general social network structures. The levels of segregation attained are in line with those reached in the lattice-based spatial proximity model.

Keywords: Spatial; proximity; model; Social; segregation; Interest; rate; rule; Schelling; Proximity; preferences; Social; networks; Undirected; graphs; Best-response; dynamics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2007
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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Working Paper: Segregation in Networks (2005)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:64:y:2007:i:3-4:p:316-336

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