What is Economic Mobility?
What is economic mobility & how is it measured?
Economic mobility is the ability of an individual or family to move up or down the economic ladder, usually measured by income, either over a lifetime or across generations. It encompasses both upward movement (improvement) and downward movement (decline) and is influenced by factors such as education, employment opportunities, neighborhood conditions, and social capital.
Studies Show...
Harvard’s Raj Chetty and his research group Opportunity Insights released an updated economic mobility study in 2024. Atlanta ranked 50th out of 50 major metro areas for upward mobility, dropping from 49th in 2014. Meanwhile, Charlotte improved from 50th to 38th.
The Equality of Opportunity study (“the Chetty Study”) found that where a child grows up greatly affects their chances of economic advancement. Looking at children from low-income families, the study measured:
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how far these children moved up (or down) the income ladder as adults in comparison to their parents, on average.
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the likelihood that these children would rise from the bottom fifth of the economic ladder to the top fifth by early adulthood.
Using millions of de-identified tax records, Chetty tracked children born between 1980–1982 into adulthood. In places like San Jose, children had a 12.9% chance of moving from the bottom to the top fifth of incomes—higher than in any developed country. In Atlanta, the odds were less than 5%, lower than in every developed country studied. – Source: Leading on Opportunity
Atlanta Way 2.0 is dedicated to convening the community across all sectors to improve the economic mobility of our region.
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Resources
Neighborhood Nexus
One Atlanta: Economic Mobility, Recovery and Resiliency Plan
As part of the Mayor’s One Atlanta vision, Invest Atlanta and WorkSource Atlanta developed the One Atlanta: Economic Mobility, Recovery & Resiliency Plan with the goal to achieve better outcomes for all Atlantans, particularly those in black and brown communities, so they can be more resilient to economic downturns, build intergenerational wealth and achieve economic mobility.
The plan was created using extensive quantitative and qualitative data analysis and by engaging with more than 200 residents and stakeholders. It sets clear objectives, actions, and key performance indicators (KPIs). In addition, a set of indicators was developed to illustrate economic mobility in different neighborhoods. Using these indicators, this neighborhood map visualizes whether economic mobility pathways are operating effectively in different parts of the city and enabling residents to achieve better economic and social outcomes.
Opportunity Insights
The divergent trends in economic mobility were caused by differential changes in childhood environments, as proxied by parental employment rates, within local communities defined by race, class, and childhood county. Outcomes improve across birth cohorts for children who grow up in communities with increasing parental employment rates, with larger effects for children who move to such communities at younger ages. Children’s outcomes are most strongly related to the parental employment rates of peers they are more likely to interact with, such as those in their own birth cohort, suggesting that the relationship between children’s outcomes and parental employment rates is mediated by social interaction. Our findings imply that community-level changes in one generation can propagate to the next generation and thereby generate rapid changes in economic mobility.
Invest Atlanta
Economic Mobility, Recovery & Resiliency Plan
The City of Atlanta and Invest Atlanta have adopted a new economic development strategy for the city. Atlanta's Economic Mobility, Recovery & Resiliency Plan establishes clear objectives to achieve better economic and social outcomes for Atlanta residents, primarily black and brown communities where low household income and high rates of poverty and unemployment persist.
Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta
There’s no question that the needs in our community are pressing. We must move forward with great urgency to address those needs. Equity is our top priority. Our strategy, TogetherATL, provides a blueprint for the Community Foundation to champion equity and lead boldly in collaboration with our community partners, working TOGETHER to secure prosperity for all throughout Atlanta.