Mobility and Engagement Following the SARS-Cov-2 Outbreak

21 Pages Posted: 23 May 2020

See all articles by Tyler Atkinson

Tyler Atkinson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

James Dolmas

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Christoffer Koch

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

Evan F. Koenig

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Karel Mertens

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas; FRB Dallas

Anthony Murphy

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

Kei-Mu Yi

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

Date Written: May, 2020

Abstract

We develop a Social Distancing Index (SDI) based on a range of mobility metrics from Safegraph geolocation data, and validate the index with mobility data from Google and Unacast. We construct SDIs at the county, MSA, state and nationwide level, and link these measures to indicators of economic activity. According to our measures, the bulk of social distancing occurred during the week of March 15 and simultaneously across the U.S. At the national peak of social distancing in early April, localities that engaged in 10% more social distancing than average saw an additional 0.6% of their populations claiming unemployment insurance, an additional 2.8 pp reduction in small businesses employment, an additional 2.6 pp increase in small business closures, and an additional 3.2 pp reduction in new-business applications. A gradual and broad-based reduction in social distancing started in the third week of April.

Keywords: Social Distancing Index, Location Data, COVID-19, SARS-Cov-2, Social Distancing and Economic Activity

JEL Classification: E66, C15, R11, R19

Suggested Citation

Atkinson, Tyler and Dolmas, James and Koch, Christoffer and Koenig, Evan F. and Mertens, Karel and Mertens, Karel and Murphy, Anthony and Yi, Kei-Mu, Mobility and Engagement Following the SARS-Cov-2 Outbreak (May, 2020). FRB of Dallas Working Paper No. 2014, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3607732 or http://dx.doi.org/10.24149/wp2014

Tyler Atkinson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

James Dolmas

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Christoffer Koch

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas ( email )

2200 North Pearl Street
PO Box 655906
Dallas, TX Texas 75265-5906
United States

HOME PAGE: http://www.dallasfed.org

Evan F. Koenig

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Karel Mertens (Contact Author)

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas ( email )

2200 North Pearl Street
PO Box 655906
Dallas, TX 75265-5906
United States

FRB Dallas ( email )

2200 North Pearl Street
PO Box 655906
Dallas, TX 75265-5906
United States

Anthony Murphy

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas ( email )

Kei-Mu Yi

Federal Reserve Banks - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas ( email )

2200 North Pearl Street
PO Box 655906
Dallas, TX 75265-5906
United States

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