SUBURBAN PERSISTENCE.

Suburban areas have grown more rapidly in recent decades than have central cities. It has often been suggested that individuals with higher socio-economic status have deserted cities for suburbs, thus increasing city-suburban socio-economic differentials. An analysis of changes in population composition from 1950 to 1960 for certain urbanized areas lends support to this hypothesis. But if suburbs are looked at individually, instead of as aggregate; a different pattern of compositional change emerges. Particular suburbs retain their peculiar socio-economic characteristics for long periods of time and even rapid population growth does not produce substantial changes in a suburb's socio-economic characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]