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Social Disparities and Social Distancing During the Covid Pandemic

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  • Lewis Davis

    (Union College)

  • Justin Esposito

    (Union College)

Abstract

According to Putnam (2000) and Bourdieu (1986), social disparities may result in the formation of narrow social bonds that exacerbate existing social cleavages and impede collective action. Motivated by this insight, we examine the relationship between social disparities and social distancing during the pre-vaccine Covid pandemic in the US. Using a panel of weekly, county-level observations, we find that income, educational and racial disparities are associated with a statistically significant decrease in the social distancing. This result is robust to controls for a wide variety of socioeconomic variables, the Covid infection rate, and a measure of social capital.

Suggested Citation

  • Lewis Davis & Justin Esposito, 2023. "Social Disparities and Social Distancing During the Covid Pandemic," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 49(2), pages 129-141, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:easeco:v:49:y:2023:i:2:d:10.1057_s41302-023-00241-6
    DOI: 10.1057/s41302-023-00241-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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