A dissimilarity index above 60 signals involuntary segregation, not voluntary clustering

Evidence

In general, segregation levels rarely exceed a dissimilarity value of 60 in the absence of involuntary factors; and they are almost never sustained at such high levels for any length of time. As immigrant generations succeed one another and socioeconomic status rises, the high levels of residential segregation that are created through rapid immigration tend to dissipate. Even in Los Angeles, the Hispanic-white dissimilarity index dropped markedly as one moves from the foreign-born to the native-born generation, and from low to high income groups (Denton and Massey, 1988). In urban areas of most countries, therefore, dissimilarities for minorities range from 0 to about 60, depending on a group’s … Whenever residential dissimilarity persists at levels above 60 for any length of time, it usually involves involuntary forces of one sort or another. Studies done in the United States show that African Americans continue to experience remarkably high levels of discrimination in real estate markets, banking, and insurance, and that as potential neighbors they remain objects of considerable prejudice by whites, leading to a range of avoidance behaviors (Massey and Denton, 1993). As a result, black-white residential dissimilarities in US urban areas generally range upward from 60, and unlike those of other ethnic minorities, they do not fall as socioeconomic status rises (Denton and Massey, 1988). Moreover, black residential segregation has displayed little tendency to decline over time, except in places where the number of blacks is so small that complete desegregation yields little interracial mixing (Krivo and Kaufman, 1999). — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 2426

Categorization

• DEFINE: Explains the dissimilarity index threshold of 60 as a diagnostic marker distinguishing involuntary from voluntary segregation.
• XREF: connects to: Mild individual in-group preference generates macro segregation spontaneously — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 383; Spatial and epistemic segregation persisted despite intimate daily contact. — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 1556