The Effects of Black Excellence on Labor-Market Outcomes and Migration Open Access
Beauvile, Roberson (Spring 2025)
Abstract
This dissertation uses the New Great Migration (1970-Present) to illustrate the inextricable link between black excellence, labor market outcomes, and black migration. Chapter 1 of this dissertation introduces the context behind this link, situating it within the New Great Migration paradigm. The next three chapters make four main contributions to the literature. In chapter 2, I found that black applicants who exuded excellence see their labor gradients doubled when compared to their white counterparts. That is, black applicants who exude excellence see the lowest callback rates among all applicants in cities such as New York but see the highest callback rates in cities such as Atlanta. In chapter 3, I mapped the transformation of community cultural wealth into economic capital using Structural Equation Modeling. I found that for children growing up in a household of black excellence, the six forms of capital (aspirational, navigational, resistance, social, linguistic, and familial capital) are collectively twice as important to economic and social mobility as the pathway through education. In chapter 4, I found that, all things being equal, black excellence almost triples the odds of migration within the US. Additionally, I found that in regard to the effect of black excellence on planning to move in the near future, black excellence is moderated by how strong respondent’s immediate interpersonal networks were, nearly doubling the odds of planning to move in the near future. Thus, this dissertation contributes to the literature on internal mass migration by demonstrating that, in modern times, black excellence plays a key role in the mass migration of black people in the US.
Table of Contents
Abstract iv
Acknowledgment vi
List of Tables x
List of Figures xi
Chapter 1: Main Introduction
1.1 Background 2
1.2 Significance 5
1.3 Structure of Dissertation 6
1.4 References 7
Chapter 2: The Effects of Black Excellence on Labor-Market Outcomes: A Resume Audit Study on Race, Status, and Labor Gradients in Atlanta and New York City
2.1 Abstract 9
2.2 Introduction 10
2.3 “Black Excellence” as Culture 13
2.4 Black Excellence as Community Wealth 15
2.5 Labor Gradients 17
2.6 Migration 19
2.6.1 The ‘New Great Migration’ and Labor Gradients 19
2.6.2 The Changing Southern Racial Climate 20
2.6.3 Discrimination 20
2.7 Methods 23
2.7.1 Resume Audit 23
2.7.2 Indicators of Race and Status 23
2.7.3 Randomization 25
2.7.4 Sample Size Estimation 28
2.8 Results 30
2.8.1 Analysis 30
2.8.2 Logistic Regression Results 33
2.9 Discussion 35
2.10 References 39
Chapter 3: A Causal Structural Analysis of the Effects of Black Excellence on Household Income
3.1 Abstract 45
3.2 Introduction 47
3.3 Constructing the Path Diagram 49
3.4 Analytical Causal Modeling 54
3.5 Data 59
3.6 Methods 60
3.6.1 Variables of Interest 60
3.6.2 Analysis Methods 63
3.7 Findings 64
3.7.1 Path and Correlation Coefficients 64
3.7.2 Total Effect 70
2.8 Discussion 75
3.9 References 80
Chapter 4: Tie Strength, Black Excellence, and Migration Prediction: Results from Logistic Regressions and Machine Learning
4.1 Abstract 84
4.2 Introduction 85
4.3 The Migration Process: Initiation, Perpetuation, and Termination 87
4.3.1 The Axiom of Migratory Behavior 87
4.3.2 Migration Initiation and Inhibition 88
4.3.3 Migration Perpetuation 90
4.4 Methods 92
4.4.1 Measuring Migration 92
4.4.2 Measuring Future Migration 93
4.4.3 Why People Move? 94
4.4.4 Tie Strength 95
4.4.5 Controls 97
4.5 Results 98
4.5.1 Estimating Internal Migration 98
4.5.2 Predicting Migration 101
4.6 Discussion 103
4.7 References 107
Chapter 5: Conclusion and Discussion
5.1 Conclusion and Discussion 112
5.1.1 Key Findings and Their Implications 113
5.1.2 Limitations and Directions for Future Research 117
5.1.3 Theoretical Contributions and Future Research Directions 119
5.1.4 Conclusion 121
Appendices 122
• Appendix A: Machine Learning Approach to Migration Prediction
List of Tables
Table 2.1: Percentage of Jobs Titles 27
Table 2.2: Percentage of Jobs' Location 28
Table 2.3: Call-back Rate Differential 31
Table 2.4: Differences in Call-back Rates by Race and Class 32
Table 2.5: Odds Ratio Logistic Regression 34
Table 3.1: Contribution of the Total Effect 72
Table 4.1: Reasons for Internal Migration in 2017 94
Table 4.2: Distribution of Respondent Characteristics by Tie Index 96
Table 4.3: Logistic Regression Estimating Migration in the US 99
Table 4.4: Logistic Regression Estimating Migration in Near Future 102
Table 1A Classification Report for Logistic Regression 129
Table 2A Classification Report for Random Forest 130
List of Figures
Figure 2.1: Yearly Percentage of “black excellence” 14
Figure 3.1: General Path Diagram for the Causal Pathways 54
Figure 3.2.1 Standardized Path Diagram for All Households 65
Figure 3.2.2 Unstandardized Path Diagram for All Households 65
Figure 3.3.1 Standardized Path Diagram for White Households 66
Figure 3.3.2 Unstandardized Path Diagram for White Households 66
Figure 3.4.1 Standardized Path Diagram for Black Households 67
Figure 3.4.2 Unstandardized Path Diagram for Black Households 67
Figure 3.5.1 Standardized Path Diagram for Black Households with College 68
Figure 3.5.2 2 Unstandardized Path Diagram for Black Households with College 68
Figure 3.6 Unstandardized Path Diagram for Black Households with Graduate Level 69
Figure 1A Feature Importance Using Logistic Regression 124 Figure 2A Feature Importance for Random Forest 125
Figure 3A Learning Curve for Logistic Regression 126
Figure 4A Learning Curve for Random Forest 127
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