Neighborhoods and perceived social mobility: Evidence from Barcelona

I study the association between neighborhood exposure to social mobility and perceived social mobility. I use social mobility estimates obtained by linking millions of children to their parents in income tax returns. I use data from an original survey conducted in Barcelona to elicit perceptions. I find no association between exposure to actual social mobility in the neighborhood and perceived social mobility, suggesting that individuals do not extrapolate from their local environments when forming their beliefs about social mobility. • Neighborhood social mobility exposure is not associated with perceived social mobility. • Suggesting that individuals do not extrapolate from their local environments when forming social mobility beliefs. • Sorting could be relevant, but this study cannot take it into account. • Further research in this area is needed.