Policies and Practices to Strengthen Youth Mental Health, Academic Success, and Economic Mobility in Mixed-Income Neighborhoods and Schools
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22124693 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jane Leer (0000-0002-7594-217X, San Diego State University, corresponding author), Candice L Odgers (0000-0003-4937-6618, University of California System) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-10 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2372-7322 • E-ISSN: 2372-7330 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/23727322261459929 |
| OpenAlex | W7164152930 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 61 |
Economic integration can combat high and rising inequality, but young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds do not automatically benefit from mixed-income neighborhoods and schools. According to this research synthesis, although mixed-income settings can increase upward mobility, exposure to higher-income peers may have negative effects on mental and behavioral health, especially during adolescence. Policies should aim to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of economic integration by prioritizing integration at a local level (e.g., block groups, classrooms), aligning housing and education policies, investing in third places (such as libraries, parks, digital platforms), and supporting youth belonging through identity-affirming environments and opportunities for collective action
Disadvantaged · Economic integration · Economic mobility · Mental health · Social integration · Social mobility · Health disparities and outcomes · School Choice and Performance · Urban, Neighborhood, and Segregation Studies
Integrating the Inner City
Recentering Action in Critical Consciousness
Perceived Socioeconomic Status
Best Practices in Conceptualizing and Measuring Social Class in Psychological Research
A Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Social Media Exposure to Upward Comparison Targets on Self-Evaluations and Emotions
Untangling the Relationship Between Income Inequality and Poly-Substance Use Among Adolescents in Canada
Determining Gentrification’s Relationship to Birth Outcomes in Metropolitan California
Negative upward comparison and relative deprivation
Social Class Discrimination and Academic Success
The relationship between perceived income inequality, adverse mental health and interpersonal difficulties in UK adolescents
The Development of Critical Consciousness and its Relation to Academic Achievement in Adolescents of Color
Experimental Analysis of Neighborhood Effects
The Effects of Exposure to Better Neighborhoods on Children
Developmental Intergroup Theory
Does Relative Deprivation within Schools Influence Adolescent Depression
Social media use does not increase individual-based relative deprivation
A belief in socioeconomic mobility promotes the development of academically motivating identities among low-socioeconomic status youth
Income inequality and health
Is America coming apart? Socioeconomic segregation in neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and social networks, 1970–2020
Inclusionary housing in the United States
Income inequality within urban settings and depressive symptoms among adolescents
How Neighborhood Structural and Institutional Features Can Shape Neighborhood Social Connectedness
Community income inequality and adolescent emotional problems
Socioeconomic Status and Adolescent Mental Disorders
Neighborhoods, Schools, and Adolescent Violence
Being Poorer Than the Rest of the Neighborhood
Cross-class friendship and academic achievement in middle school
Direct and indirect pathways linking gentrification to adolescent reading and math achievement via educational aspirations and psychological distress
Critical action as a pathway to social mobility among marginalized youth
Unequal selves in the classroom
A bitter pill to swallow? Patterns of critical consciousness and socioemotional and academic well-being in early adolescence
Children’s and adolescents’ understanding and experiences of economic inequality
From deficit to benefit
Perceptions of socioeconomic mobility influence academic persistence among low socioeconomic status students
Impact of neighborhood income inequality on adolescents' mental health. Results from the STARS study
You’ve made it if you can, not have to live to survive, but live to live
The Enduring Significance of Race in Mixed-Income Developments
Adolescent Development
The role of stereotyping in system-justification and the production of false consciousness
Low-Income Students and the Socioeconomic Composition of Public High Schools
Examining how social class discrimination is associated with combustible tobacco use, nicotine vaping, and dual use among adolescents in California
Neighborhoods and Schools as Competing and Reinforcing Contexts for Educational Attainment
Gentrification, displacement, and academic achievement
Social closure, school socioeconomic composition, and inequality in college enrollments
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |