Masters Theses

Date of Award

12-2003

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Geography

Major Professor

Charles Aiken

Abstract

Manufacturing no longer constitutes the predominant economic activity in advanced economies. This leading role has been replaced by the provision of services. As economies experience increasing concentrations in service sector occupations, one must consider the effects such alterations have on the intraurban distributions of occupation, income, and race. The link between economic restructuring and increased sociospatial inequality in global cities has been subject to recent study. Changes at other levels of the urban hierarchy have not been addressed. To examine effects in a middle tier metropolitan area, Birmingham, Alabama was selected as the site of my research. Though an important aspect of the economy, contributing significantly to the economic stability of the area, the iron and steel industry no longer provides the direct livelihood for the majority of the population. Presently, the service industry possesses the lion's share of the Birmingham Metropolitan Area's economic structure. Leading employment sectors are health care and social services, retail trade, manufacturing, and finance and insurance. U.S. Census data for 1970 and 1990 were assessed through statistical analysis. Occupation variables were divided into three groupings: manufacturing/craft workers, service workers, and professionals. Income was measured for households using both mean and median values. The population is predominately white or black. These variables were examined in regard to race. To assess changes in different parts of the Metropolitan Area, zones were delineated based on the period during which the intense construction occurred. Increased intraurban social disparity, especially in certain zones, is evident. Changes in the economic base and local employment characteristics affected the social structure of the Birmingham Metropolitan Area. Shifts in the distribution of occupation and income revealed increased inequality and segregation. Spatial inequality of income was evident in the Metropolitan Area at both the zonal and census tract levels. Less desirable sections of the Metropolitan Area increasingly became home to manufacturing/craft and low-wage service workers. A few remnant nodes of affluent professionals remained in the inner city and mature suburb zones, increasing segregation within these zones. Professionals were the principal occupation group residing in the new suburbs. A mix of occupations, however, characterizes certain census tracts in this zone. It is apparent that restructuring local economies are a significant factor in the myriad influences which affect the social structure of metropolitan area, whatever its position in the urban hierarchy.

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