Spatial Polarisation*

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Cerina, Fabio; Dienesch, Elisa; Moro, Alessio; Rendall, Michelle
• 署名单位: University of Cagliari; Aix-Marseille Universite; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS); Aix-Marseille Universite; Monash University; Centre for Economic Policy Research - UK
• 刊物名称: ECONOMIC JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0013-0133
• DOI: 10.1093/ej/ueac040
• 发表日期: 2022
• 页码: 30-69
• 关键词: household production; UNITED-STATES; allocation; INEQUALITY; taxes; work; time

摘要

We document the emergence of spatial polarisation in the United States during the 1980-2008 period. This phenomenon is characterised by stronger employment polarisation in larger cities, both at the occupational and the worker levels. We quantitatively evaluate the role of technology in generating these patterns by constructing and calibrating a spatial equilibrium model. We find that faster skill-biased technological change in larger cities can account for a substantial fraction of spatial polarisation in the United States. Counterfactual exercises suggest that the differential increase in the share of low-skilled workers across city size is due mainly to the large demand by high-skilled workers for low-skilled services and, to a smaller extent, to the higher complementarity between low- and high-skilled workers in production relative to middle-skilled workers.