Search

Post-1980 internal migration patterns were unanticipated, and prevailing explanations of them fail to account for the effects of new international relationships. A human ecological theory is developed which suggests an explanation based on the sphere of sustenance activities in ecosystems and relative dominance in these activities. Larger net migration was expected for countries specialized in activities that operate in international ecosystems in which the United States is dominant and less in other types of countries. The results for post-1980 migration in United States counties support these expectations and the utility of an expanded human ecological perspective.

Abstract The extent to which residential segregation results from differences in the socioeconomic status of racial/ethnic groups remains a topic of debate. Although recent studies have argued that improvements in minority groups' socioeconomic status will lead to reduced residential segregation, such analyses have been cross-sectional. This study uses longitudinal data from 27 central cities in Texas to examine the effects of 1970, 1980, and 1970-80 changes in socioeconomic status on Black-White, Anglo-Spanish, and Black-Spanish segregation. The findings indicate that socioeconomic factors are not significant determinants of racial/ethnic segregation in these periods. Rather, age of city, population growth, and percent of the population of minority status appear to explain patterns of residential segregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The financial crisis in U.S. agriculture is apparent, but neither the characteristics of producers experiencing financial stress nor the utility of alternative theoretical perspectives for explaining producers' financial conditions have been adequately assessed empirically. Data from a survey in Texas and North Dakota are used to examine the characteristics of producers experiencing financial stress and to assess the relative utility of the adoption and diffusion, structural, and ecological frameworks for explaining producers' financial conditions. Of all producers, 30 percent had debt-to-asset ratios of over 40 percent, and more than 33 percent had negative net cash farm incomes in 1984. Those producers who are most severely impacted are young, have large families, entered farming after 1970, operate moderate-sized farms, and use sophisticated technical and management practices. We find that the theoretical frameworks do not adequately explain differences in producers' financial conditions. Policy and theoretical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relative effects of a set of economic factors and three sets of noneconomic factors-demographic, public service and governmental, and socioeconomic factors-on 1960-1970 and 1970-1980 age-specific net migration rates for Texas counties. The results indicate that economic factors were clearly the most powerful predictors of migration during the 1960-1970 period. During the 1970-1980 period, economic determinants were still the most powerful predictors of migration levels for age groups over 40, but socioeconomic factors were the mot powerful predictors for those 10-29 years of age while demographic factors provided the best predictors for the 30-39 year-old group. Overall, the results suggest that economic factors have decreased, and noneconomic (particularly socioeconomic) factors have increased in importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]