Americans have long understood that their birthplace can significantly affect their futures, and academics have increasingly been able to connect tangible early life factors like where they live and the friendships they've cultivated with potential future income.
Among the most recent studies shedding light on what's known as economic mobility—a person's ability to move themselves and their families up the socioeconomic ladder over their lifetime—are a series of papers authored by Harvard University researchers leveraging vast troves of social networking data.
As part of a national analysis, Wealth Enhancement Group used data from Harvard University's Social Capital Atlas project to identify where in South Carolina children have the best (and worst) chances at upward economic mobility.
The research draws on a privacy-protected dataset representing 21 billion friendships from Facebook made public through its parent company Meta's Data for Good project. It also uses anonymous tax records, according to the authors. The scholars assigned a score to locales according to how economically connected low- and high-income people living in the area have historically been over at least a decade, per that data. The dataset does not include scores for about 180 of the 3,000 or so counties in the U.S.
The research attempts to fill in the gaps of previous efforts to study American economic mobility that did not consider a person's vast social networks nor their importance in creating better lives for themselves and their children.
It turns out the ability to cultivate friendships linking people of different socioeconomic backgrounds with one another is the strongest factor in determining whether a child can surpass the earning potential of their parents, Harvard researchers found. They call this economic connectedness.
Read on to find out where economic connectedness is strongest in your state.
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1 / 46#46. Allendale County
- Economic connectedness: 0.36
- Median Income: $31,800
- Population: 8,304
--- 22.9% white
--- 73.2% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.8% Asian
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2 / 46#45. Marlboro County
- Economic connectedness: 0.38
- Median Income: $32,136
- Population: 26,912
--- 40% white
--- 50.1% Black
--- 3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.3% Asian
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3 / 46#44. Dillon County
- Economic connectedness: 0.41
- Median Income: $39,780
- Population: 28,527
--- 46.4% white
--- 47.4% Black
--- 2.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
#43. Saluda County
- Economic connectedness: 0.41
- Median Income: $46,451
- Population: 19,008
--- 62.2% white
--- 24.5% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0% Asian
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5 / 46#42. Marion County
- Economic connectedness: 0.43
- Median Income: $34,465
- Population: 29,585
--- 38.7% white
--- 56.9% Black
--- 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.3% Asian
#41. Lee County
- Economic connectedness: 0.43
- Median Income: $36,195
- Population: 16,730
--- 33.7% white
--- 63% Black
--- 0% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
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7 / 46#40. Williamsburg County
- Economic connectedness: 0.45
- Median Income: $40,124
- Population: 31,279
--- 32.1% white
--- 64.4% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.6% Asian
#39. Union County
- Economic connectedness: 0.47
- Median Income: $40,048
- Population: 27,306
--- 64.9% white
--- 30% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
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9 / 46#38. Bamberg County
- Economic connectedness: 0.47
- Median Income: $44,408
- Population: 13,525
--- 37.2% white
--- 60.2% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.3% Asian
#37. Cherokee County
- Economic connectedness: 0.47
- Median Income: $41,330
- Population: 56,204
--- 73.5% white
--- 19.8% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.2% Asian
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11 / 46#36. Orangeburg County
- Economic connectedness: 0.47
- Median Income: $38,052
- Population: 84,909
--- 35% white
--- 61.8% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.8% Asian
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12 / 46#35. Barnwell County
- Economic connectedness: 0.49
- Median Income: $38,237
- Population: 20,801
--- 51.4% white
--- 46.6% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
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13 / 46#34. Hampton County
- Economic connectedness: 0.5
- Median Income: $38,298
- Population: 19,227
--- 41.2% white
--- 52.8% Black
--- 0% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.7% Asian
#33. Colleton County
- Economic connectedness: 0.5
- Median Income: $41,419
- Population: 38,520
--- 56.7% white
--- 35.9% Black
--- 0.9% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.5% Asian
Jared Freye // Shutterstock
15 / 46#32. Darlington County
- Economic connectedness: 0.5
- Median Income: $40,704
- Population: 63,433
--- 55.7% white
--- 41.4% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.3% Asian
#31. Fairfield County
- Economic connectedness: 0.51
- Median Income: $41,755
- Population: 21,186
--- 39.3% white
--- 57.3% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.2% Asian
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17 / 46#30. Chesterfield County
- Economic connectedness: 0.51
- Median Income: $45,046
- Population: 43,655
--- 62.6% white
--- 31.2% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.5% Asian
#29. Chester County
- Economic connectedness: 0.51
- Median Income: $46,441
- Population: 32,273
--- 59.7% white
--- 37% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.5% Asian
#28. Laurens County
- Economic connectedness: 0.52
- Median Income: $46,754
- Population: 67,148
--- 69.3% white
--- 22.9% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.5% Asian
#27. Jasper County
- Economic connectedness: 0.52
- Median Income: $47,811
- Population: 28,363
--- 49.4% white
--- 39% Black
--- 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.6% Asian
#26. Greenwood County
- Economic connectedness: 0.52
- Median Income: $44,513
- Population: 69,338
--- 62.7% white
--- 32% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.8% Asian
#25. Clarendon County
- Economic connectedness: 0.52
- Median Income: $45,542
- Population: 31,613
--- 48.9% white
--- 46.4% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.8% Asian
#24. Florence County
- Economic connectedness: 0.53
- Median Income: $51,902
- Population: 137,276
--- 51.6% white
--- 43% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.4% Asian
#23. Georgetown County
- Economic connectedness: 0.54
- Median Income: $55,719
- Population: 62,992
--- 65.2% white
--- 30.6% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.6% Asian
#22. Newberry County
- Economic connectedness: 0.54
- Median Income: $50,950
- Population: 37,842
--- 61.9% white
--- 30.7% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.2% Asian
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26 / 46#21. Calhoun County
- Economic connectedness: 0.55
- Median Income: $52,491
- Population: 14,198
--- 56.1% white
--- 39.7% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
#20. Sumter County
- Economic connectedness: 0.55
- Median Income: $49,040
- Population: 105,537
--- 45.8% white
--- 46.1% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.3% Asian
#19. McCormick County
- Economic connectedness: 0.56
- Median Income: $53,193
- Population: 9,584
--- 52.2% white
--- 44.4% Black
--- 0% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.1% Asian
#18. Abbeville County
- Economic connectedness: 0.58
- Median Income: $45,710
- Population: 24,374
--- 69.7% white
--- 26.9% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.3% Asian
#17. Lancaster County
- Economic connectedness: 0.62
- Median Income: $67,407
- Population: 94,653
--- 73% white
--- 20.1% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.6% Asian
#16. Richland County
- Economic connectedness: 0.63
- Median Income: $56,137
- Population: 414,719
--- 43.1% white
--- 47.3% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2.9% Asian
#15. Spartanburg County
- Economic connectedness: 0.63
- Median Income: $57,627
- Population: 322,864
--- 70.5% white
--- 20.3% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2.2% Asian
#14. Aiken County
- Economic connectedness: 0.64
- Median Income: $57,572
- Population: 168,045
--- 68.4% white
--- 24.8% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1% Asian
#13. Anderson County
- Economic connectedness: 0.64
- Median Income: $56,796
- Population: 202,223
--- 78.4% white
--- 15.4% Black
--- 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1% Asian
Bennekom // Shutterstock
35 / 46#12. Edgefield County
- Economic connectedness: 0.65
- Median Income: $55,183
- Population: 25,938
--- 60% white
--- 34.2% Black
--- 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.2% Asian
#11. Oconee County
- Economic connectedness: 0.65
- Median Income: $52,842
- Population: 77,932
--- 85.8% white
--- 7.1% Black
--- 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.9% Asian
#10. Kershaw County
- Economic connectedness: 0.67
- Median Income: $56,449
- Population: 64,989
--- 69.5% white
--- 23.4% Black
--- 0% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 0.5% Asian
#9. Greenville County
- Economic connectedness: 0.71
- Median Income: $65,513
- Population: 519,178
--- 70.7% white
--- 17.2% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2.5% Asian
#8. Dorchester County
- Economic connectedness: 0.72
- Median Income: $68,046
- Population: 160,180
--- 65.4% white
--- 24.8% Black
--- 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2% Asian
#7. Lexington County
- Economic connectedness: 0.72
- Median Income: $65,623
- Population: 291,723
--- 76.1% white
--- 14.9% Black
--- 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2% Asian
#6. Beaufort County
- Economic connectedness: 0.73
- Median Income: $74,199
- Population: 186,007
--- 72% white
--- 16.9% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.2% Asian
#5. Horry County
- Economic connectedness: 0.73
- Median Income: $54,688
- Population: 344,865
--- 80% white
--- 12.7% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.3% Asian
#4. Berkeley County
- Economic connectedness: 0.74
- Median Income: $70,786
- Population: 224,806
--- 65.1% white
--- 23.5% Black
--- 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2.3% Asian
#3. Pickens County
- Economic connectedness: 0.74
- Median Income: $53,188
- Population: 129,617
--- 87% white
--- 6.4% Black
--- 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.8% Asian
Nolichuckyjake // Shutterstock
45 / 46#2. York County
- Economic connectedness: 0.76
- Median Income: $72,234
- Population: 276,569
--- 72.3% white
--- 18.9% Black
--- 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 2.6% Asian
#1. Charleston County
- Economic connectedness: 0.79
- Median Income: $70,807
- Population: 404,946
--- 67.4% white
--- 25.4% Black
--- 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native
--- 1.7% Asian
This story features data reporting and writing by Dom DiFurio and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
