Geographies of Opportunity for Youth Across the Contiguous United States

Abstract

Opportunity youths (OY) are youths between 16 and 24 years of age who are neither in school nor working. Research suggests that youth disconnection can have negative consequences on youths’ well-being, their communities, and the economy at large. The existing literature however neglects the underlying socio-demographic and economic factors that systematically contribute to the cause of youth disconnection in the United States. This study aims to explore the characteristics associated with youth disconnection and their spatially varying effects in different regions across the contiguous United States. Using data from the 2015 to 2019 5-year American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Sample, results suggest that areas with higher percentages of OY are located in the Sunbelt region (e.g., southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Georgia). Moreover, a multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) analysis illustrated spatially varying relationships with disconnection, demonstrating that factors have unique effects across different geographic areas. The potential impact of intersectionality for OY by race and ethnicity, ability, nationality, language, income, and parenting status is discussed. These results highlight the influence of local contexts in creating and reinforcing youth disconnection as well as informing responses to local support services for OY.