Next-Door Neighbors

A 2025 paper looking at the influence a child’s next-door neighbors have on their eventual career trajectory found that these neighbors meaningfully increase the likelihood that a child will be working the same job as they are 30-years in the future.

The study looked at historical census records for more than 6 million boys and 4 million girls, and it took advantage of data that allowed researchers to compare occupational outcomes between children who lived, for instance, next door to a doctor or mechanic or grocery store manager, and those who lived further down the same street from that neighbor.

They found that children are about 10% more likely to be engaged in the same occupation as their next-door neighbor than that of a neighbor who lives further away (even just a few doors down).