This paper investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the income diversity of urban encounters. Using a large-scale mobility dataset of over one million anonymized mobile phone users in four US cities, the study finds a substantial decrease (15% to 30%) in encounter diversity during the pandemic, persisting even after aggregated mobility metrics recovered. Counterfactual analyses attribute this decrease to reduced willingness to explore new places and altered visitation preferences. The findings highlight the trade-off between pandemic control measures and the diversity of urban encounters.
Publisher
Nature Communications
Published On
Apr 21, 2023
Authors
Takahiro Yabe, Bernardo García Bulle Bueno, Xiaowen Dong, Alex Pentland, Esteban Moro
Tags
COVID-19
urban encounters
income diversity
mobility dataset
public health
visitation preferences
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