The authors construct a regional model of residential segregation in the South, using demographic and socioeconomic variables. Based on an analysis of the age, size, percent black, and occupational and income differentials in 32 southern cities, the findings show that: (1) age is still the strongest predictor of residential segregation; (2) socioeconomic factors need to be examined in their traditional southern context as indicators of residential segregation; (3) occupational-not income-differences have the greater effect on levels of residential segregation; and (4) changes in socioeconomic status for blacks in the South have not been accompanied by concomitant changes in residential segregation. Problems of developing and testing causal models of segregation are discussed, combined with specific suggestions for future research. Residential segregation in southern cities has long been recognized as distinctly different, for various historical, social, and economic reasons. Levels of segregation have been higher in southern cities, and for several decades-especially the forties and fifties-these cities increased in residential segregation more rapidly than cities elsewhere (cf. Taeuber and Taeuber). In addition, black-white socioeconomic differences have traditionally been greater in southern cities (Bahr and Gibbs; Jiobu and Marshall). Greater inequalities in housing, education, occupations, and income have led many to speculate that the social and demographic correlates of segregation differ for the region. But whether distinctively southern segregation patterns persist in the 1970s is an open question. Preliminary calculations by Sorenson et al. show that the average residential segregation scores for southern cities are lower in 1970 than in 1960, indicating, at least for central cities, a reversal in the 30-year trend of increasing racial separation. The South is also becoming increasingly indistinguishable from the rest of the nation in macro-structura7characteristics. Evidence on industrialization, urbanization, education, income, and occupational structure indicates that change is occurring more rapidly in the region than in the society as a whole, transforming it into an integral part of American society (cf. McKinney and Bourque; Reissman). These changes signal important shifts in opportunities for *This paper reports on research funded by the National Science Foundation, Grants G-41243 and Soc. 75-03438. An earlier version was presented at the annual meeting of the Southern Sociological Society, 1975. We would like to acknowledge the technical assistance of Jerry Wilcox in the data analysis and the helpful comments and suggestions of Joel Smith, T. 0. Wilkinson, Hilda Golden, Terry Roof, and two anonymous reviewers.