Back to the future: A simple solution to Schelling segregation

Arbeitspapier

The maximum entropy methodology is applied to the Schelling model of urban segregation in order to obtain a reliable prediction of the stable configuration of the system without resorting to numerical simulations. We show that this approach also provides an implicit equation describing the distribution of agents over a city which allows for directly assessing the effect of model parameters on the solution. Finally, we discuss the information theoretic motivation for applying this methodology to the Schelling model, and show that it effectively rests on the presence of a potential function, suggesting a broader applicability of the methodology.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: School of Economics Discussion Papers ; No. 11,04

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Bayesian Analysis: General ; Computational Techniques; Simulation Modeling ; Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty: General ; Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
• Subject: information theoretic measure ; potential function ; Schelling segregation model

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Barde, Sylvain
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): University of Kent, School of Economics
• (where): Canterbury
• (when): 2011

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/50578
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET