Relative Size of Racial Minority Groups and Residential Preferences

Last registered on March 03, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Relative Size of Racial Minority Groups and Residential Preferences
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015360
Initial registration date
February 26, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
March 03, 2025, 8:08 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
United States of America
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Rio Ikeuchi
Affiliation
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Takuma Kamada
PI Affiliation
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-03-01
End date
2025-03-31
Keywords
Other
Additional Keywords
Race and ethnicity, Residential choice
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study examines how the residential preferences of White individuals are influenced by information about the racial composition of non-White groups in U.S. counties. While previous research has focused on the share of a single minority group, this study argues that both the absolute size of a non-White group and its relative size in comparison to other non-White groups influence neighborhood choices. To explore this, respondents are randomly assigned to either a control or treatment group, with the treatment group receiving an additional statement indicating that the focal non-White group has become the largest among non-White groups in the county. This research aims to explore the underexamined role of the relative size of minority groups in shaping residential patterns in the U.S. and to offer insights into the mechanisms driving residential segregation, as well as the broader implications for racial dynamics in neighborhood choices.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Ikeuchi, Rio and Takuma Kamada. 2025. "Relative Size of Racial Minority Groups and Residential Preferences." AEA RCT Registry. March 03. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15360-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We set the following two treatment conditions as follows:

A) Control: Respondents read a short news article about demographic change in a hypothetical county, indicating the share of the White population and the increased share of a focal non-White group.
B) Treated: Respondents read the same article as in the control condition, but with an additional concluding sentence stating that the focal non-White group has become the largest non-White group in the county.

Details will be discussed in the experimental design section.
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-01
Intervention End Date
2025-03-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
The neighborhood preference based on different racial demographic compositions.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
In this experiment, we set control and treated groups as follows:

A) Control: Respondents read a short news article about demographic change in a hypothetical county, indicating the share of the White population and the increased share of a focal non-White group.
B) Treated: Respondents read the same article as in the control condition but with an additional concluding sentence stating that the focal non-White group has become the largest non-White group in the county.

We focus on Hispanic, Black, and Asian groups as the focal non-White groups. Respondents are randomly assigned to one of six treatment arms (2 conditions: treatment vs. control × 3 racial groups). Across all interventions, the shares of the White population and the minority population remain fixed, ensuring that variations arise only from the racial identity of the minority group and whether the information about its rank as the largest non-White group is included.

I conduct a between-group analysis to examine how information on the relative size of a minority group affects White individuals’ hypothetical neighborhood choices. The primary focus is to compare the decision-making patterns between the treated and control groups. Prior analysis using U.S. Census data suggests that an increase in a minority group's rank (in terms of size) leads to greater residential segregation from White individuals (e.g., if the Hispanic population becomes the largest minority group in a county, Hispanic-White segregation increases, even when controlling for group size).

At the beginning of the survey, all respondents, regardless of their assigned intervention, answer questions to gather basic sociodemographic information. They are then asked about their county of residence and their perceptions of neighborhood composition. In the experimental section, participants are randomly assigned to one of six conditions (2: treatment vs. control × 3: racial groups), with each respondent reading only one article. Following the article, respondents complete two choice tasks: one involving a racially segregated county and the other a racially integrated county. The order of these tasks is randomized at the individual level.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization is done by Quatrics
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
NA
Sample size: planned number of observations
Approximately 1200 individuals
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Approximately 200 individuals will be assigned to each of the 6 treatment arms.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Princeton University Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2025-02-26
IRB Approval Number
17816
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials