A new report published in the latest issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Journal (PNAS) presents findings from research supported in part by the Russell Sage Foundation. In the study, a group of social scientists including RSF trustee Lawrence Katz, RSF grantees Jens Ludwig and Jeffrey Kling, and RSF author Greg Duncan, used data from the Moving to Opportunity program to examine how different neighborhoods affect low-income black youths’ use of African-American Vernacular English (AAVE).

Residential and economic segregation in the U.S. have contributed to growing differences within the population in AAVE use. While the use of AAVE has been shown to increase in-group solidarity and strengthen identity, it is also associated with discrimination in schools and workplaces, which may exacerbate the disadvantages of youths growing up in high-poverty areas. In their study, the authors present experimental evidence that suggests that neighborhood effects on speech that lower youths’ use of AAVE could increase their lifetime earnings by approximately $18,000 (or approximately 3–4% of lifetime income).