Skip to main content
Intended for healthcare professionals
Restricted access
Research article
First published November 2006

New York as a Global Creative Hub: A Competitive Analysis of Four Theories on World Cities

Elizabeth CurridView all authors and affiliations
Volume 20, Issue 4
https://doi.org/10.1177/0891242406292708

Abstract

How New York City has maintained its position atop the global urban hierarchy as a leading player in the world and national economy is part of the broader discussion on why cities grow and why some remain at the top of the heap decade on decade. There are several dominant theories explaining New York City’s success, most notably those that argue the city is a center of command and control or managerial elite and is a global hub of finance and its related services. Yet an emerging framework explaining New York City’s dominant position argues for the importance of global creative centers. From an occupational analysis of these competing hypotheses emerges a picture of New York City as a great bastion of creativity and cultural and artistic production. These results provide a unique perspective on New York City’s position in the world hierarchy of cities and new opportunities for economic development strategies.

Get full access to this article

View all access and purchase options for this article.

Get Access
1.
1. LQ = (OR/TER)/(ON/TEN) where OR = regional occupational employment, TER = total regional employment, ON = national occupational employment, TEN = total national employment.
2.
2. New York City’s Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA) includes the following counties: Bronx, Kings, New York, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, and Westchester. PMSAs and Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) are slightly different in geography: Whereas they are both based on an aggregation of counties, when a population reaches over one million and particular commuting and population criteria are met (as is the case with the New York City region), the MSA is subdivided into PMSAs. Therefore the NYC PMSA is comparable to other MSAs (and other PMSAs).
3.
3. Although it excludes those artists who do not work for a firm or who own their own business, it is a good proxy for capturing those artists who are actually producing art with economic value. Put another way, Occupation Employment Statistics (OES) data capture the difference between saying one is an artist and actually generating revenue from artistic production. On the other hand, OES data do not count workers who are self-employed, meaning that some occupations (particularly within arts and culture) are underrepresented as those within these sectors often work for themselves. Nevertheless, OES are the best proxy for measuring occupational concentrations on an annual basis, as census data are only provided decennially.
4.
4. Large metropolitan areas are defined as those with a population of over one million. Specifically, this research includes occupational data on Austin; Boston; Charleston, South Carolina; Chicago; Los Angeles; Miami; Minneapolis-St. Paul; Raleigh-Durham; San Diego; San Francisco; and Washington, D.C.
5.
5. This research has conducted salary location quotient (LQ) analysis for 2000 to 2004, but the LQs remain generally constant, and as such, 2004 is demonstrative of the general picture of worker welfare in the selected occupations over the past four years.
6.
6. See appendix for tables with occupational LQs for major MSAs.
7.
7. A Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) is a combined geography of two or more contiguous MSAs. New York City’s CMSA includes Bergen-Passaic, NJ PMSA; Bridgeport, CT PMSA; Danbury, CT PMSA; Dutchess County, NY PMSA; Jersey City, NJ PMSA; Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon, NJ PMSA; Monmouth-Ocean, NJ PMSA; Nassau-Suffolk, NY PMSA; New Haven-Meriden, CT PMSA; New York, NY PMSA; Newark, NJ PMSA; Newburgh, NY-PA PMSA; Stamford-Norwalk, CT PMSA; Trenton, NJ PMSA; and Waterbury, CT PMSA.
8.
8. Because OES data are samples, albeit large samples, sometimes there is irregularity in the results. For example, obviously all the law judges did not leave New York’s MSA between 2000 and 2004, but there was some degree of decline, and the sample picked up on this decrease in employment. But because the sample number became smaller and judges are not a common occupation, the decline resulted in a number that was too low to report. The same situation occurs with other specialty occupations, for example, makeup artists.
9.
9. This location quotient was derived by running an aggregate analysis on all artistic and cultural occupations, most of which are included in the tables presented.

References

Beaverstock, J. V., Smith, R. G., & Taylor, P. J. (1999). A roster of world cities. Cities, 16 (6), 445-458.
Google Scholar
Bell, D. (1973). The coming of post-industrial society: A venture in social forecasting. New York: Basic Books.
Google Scholar
Castells, M. (2000). The rise of the network society (2nd ed.). New York: Blackwell.
Google Scholar
Castells, M., & Hall, P. (1994). Technopoles of the world: The making of 21st century industrial complexes. London: Routledge.
Google Scholar
Caves, R. (2000). Creative industries: Contracts between art and commerce. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Google Scholar
Center for an Urban Future. (2001). Payoffs for layoffs: Designed to save jobs, New York City’s corporate retention deals often result in job cuts. New York: Author.
Google Scholar
Center for an Urban Future. (2002). The creative engine: How arts and culture is fueling economic growth in New York City neighborhoods. New York: Author.
Google Scholar
Center for an Urban Future. (2003). Engine failure. New York: Author.
Google Scholar
Davis, M. (1996). Fortress LA. In R. LeGates & F. Scout (Eds.), The city reader (pp. 193-198). New York: Routledge.
Google Scholar
Florida, R. (2002). The rise of the creative class: And how it’s transforming work, leisure, community and everyday life. New York: Basic Books.
Google Scholar
Friedmann, J. (1995). The world city hypothesis. In P. L. Knox & P. J. Taylor (Eds.), World cities in a world system (pp. 317-331). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar
Glaeser, E. L. (2005). Urban colossus: Why is New York America’s largest city? (Discussion paper No. 2073). Boston: Harvard Institute of Economic Research.
Google Scholar
Jacobs, J. (1961). The death and life of great American cites. New York: Random House.
Google Scholar
Jacobs, J. (1969). The economy of cities. New York: Random House.
Google Scholar
Knox, P. L., & Taylor, P. J. (Eds.). (1995). World cities in a world system. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar
Lucas, R., Jr. (1988). On the mechanics of economic development. Journal of Monetary Economics, 22(1), 3-42.
Google Scholar
Markusen, A. (2004a). The distinctive city: Evidence from artists and occupational profiles. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, Project on Regional and Industrial Economics.
Google Scholar
Markusen, A. (2004b). Longer view: Targeting occupations in regional and community economic development. Journal of the American Planning Association, 70(3), 253-268.
Google Scholar
Markusen, A., & King, D. (2003). The artistic dividend: The arts’ hidden contributions to regional development. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, Project on Regional and Industrial Economics.
Google Scholar
Markusen, A., Schrock, G., & Cameron, M. (2004). The artistic dividend revisited. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota: Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
Google Scholar
Piore, M. J., & Sabel, C. F. (1984). The second industrial divide: Possibilities for prosperity. New York: Basic Books.
Google Scholar
Rantisi, N. (2002a). The competitive foundations of localized learning and innovation: The case of women’s garment production in New York City. Economic Geography, 78, 441-462.
Google Scholar
Rantisi, N. (2002b). The local innovation system as a source of ‘variety’: Openness and adaptability in New York City’s garment district. Regional Studies, 36 (6), 587-602.
Google Scholar
Rantisi, N. (2004). The ascendance of New York fashion. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 28(1), 86-107.
Google Scholar
Sassen, S. (1991). The global city: New York, London, Tokyo. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Google Scholar
Sassen, S. (2000). Cities in a world economy. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.
Google Scholar
Saxenian, A. (1994). Regional advantage: Culture and competition in Silicon Valley and Route 128. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Google Scholar
Schumpeter, J. (1942). Capitalism, socialism and democracy. New York: Harper & Brothers.
Google Scholar
Scott, A. (1993). Technopolis. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Google Scholar
Scott, A. (2000). The cultural economy of cities. London: Sage.
Google Scholar
Scott. A. (2005). On Hollywood: The place, the industry. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Google Scholar
She’ll take Manhattan. (2004, October). Elle Magazine, 230-230.
Google Scholar
Soja, E. (1989). Postmodern geographies: The reassertion of space in critical social theory. London: Verso Books.
Google Scholar
Solow, R. M. (1956). A contribution to the theory of economic growth. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 70(1), 65-94.
Google Scholar
Thompson, W. R. (1965). A preface to urban economics. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press.
Google Scholar
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2000). Occupational employment statistics. Washington, DC: Author.
Google Scholar
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2004). Occupational employment statistics. Washington, DC: Author.
Google Scholar

Cite article

Cite article

Cite article

OR

Download to reference manager

If you have citation software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice

Share options

Share

Share this article

Share with email
EMAIL ARTICLE LINK
Share on social media

Share access to this article

Sharing links are not relevant where the article is open access and not available if you do not have a subscription.

For more information view the Sage Journals article sharing page.

Information, rights and permissions

Information

Published In

Volume 20, Issue 4
Pages: 330 - 350
Article first published: November 2006
Issue published: November 2006

Keywords

  1. creativity
  2. New York City
  3. global cities
  4. world cities
  5. economic development

Authors

Affiliations

Elizabeth Currid
University of Southern California
View all articles by this author

Metrics and citations

Metrics

Journals metrics

This article was published in Economic Development Quarterly.

VIEW ALL JOURNAL METRICS

Article usage*

Total views and downloads: 1060

*Article usage tracking started in December 2016

Altmetric

See the impact this article is making through the number of times it’s been read, and the Altmetric Score.
Learn more about the Altmetric Scores


Articles citing this one

Receive email alerts when this article is cited

Web of Science: 81 view articles Opens in new tab

Crossref: 80

  1. Staying in Bad Jobs: An “Institutional Peg” as Poland’s Adaptation to ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  2. The impact of global city location intensity on MNE performance: Lever...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  3. Economic hubs and the domination of inter-regional ties in world city ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  4. Community gardens and the 15-minute city: Scenario analysis of garden ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  5. Labour and control shifts: financial services in US metro areas, 2007–...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  6. Guest editorial: FDI and cities: city location attractiveness for FDI,...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  7. Material and symbolic production of fashion in a global creative city....
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  8. The political economy of city diplomacy
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  9. The Consumerization of Work in the Modern City: Storefronts, Coworking...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  10. Spatial Dynamics Regarding Geographical Concentration of Economic Acti...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  11. Sustainable Cities: Some Reflections on Companies’ Settlements
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  12. A place for everything and everything in its place: New York's role in...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  13. Independent fashion designers in the elusive fashion city
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  14. The Cadastre as a Source for the Analysis of Urbanization Dynamics. Ap...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  15. Designing for Urban Mobility: The Role of Digital Media Applications i...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  16. Internationalisation of SMEs and Distant Markets: The Networking and S...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  17. The emergence and strategy of tech hubs in Africa: Implications for kn...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  18. Evaluation of city sustainability using multi-criteria decision-making...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  19. The Complex Dynamic Evolution of Cultural Vibrancy in the Region of Ha...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  20. Urbanness and Its Implications for Logistics Strategy: A Revised Persp...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  21. Locating Software, Video Game, and Editing Electronics Firms: Using Mi...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  22. Agglomeration of creative industries: An intra‐metropolitan analysis f...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  23. Exploring the Relationship Between Creative Hubs and Urban Policy in E...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  24. Resurgent Cities
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  25. The Lisbon ranking for smart sustainable cities in Europe
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  26. Information Management of Creative Spaces in a Big City: A Case Study ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  27. Knowledge economy and migrant knowledge workers in the global city: a ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  28. ANÁLISE DA CIDADE BAIXA COMO POLO CRIATIVO POTENCIAL
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  29. Perception of the role of culture in the development of small cities b...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  30. Assessing corporate demand for sponsorship: marketing costs in the fin...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  31. Economia criativa e territórios usados: um debate baseado nas contribu...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  32. Producing Culture by Creative Means: A View from the Periphery
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  33. USA regional: Die Galerien ziehen weiter – die New Yorker Kunstszene a...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  34. Fragmentation and solidarity in the artistic milieu of contemporary Pa...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  35. The economic growth of creative industries in the Miami metropolitan a...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  36. Mapping the arts: industry concentrations, distribution, and change in...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  37. Measuring the cultural value of the Royal Scottish Academy New Contemp...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  38. Impacts of city personality and image on revisit intention
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  39. Industrial gentrification in West Chelsea, New York: Who survived and ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  40. Creativity and regional innovation: Evidence from EU regions
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  41. The location patterns of artistic clusters: A metro- and neighborhood-...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  42. The Cultural Product
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  43. Looking Back, Looking Forward: Arts-Based Careers and Creative Work
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  44. Development dynamics within creative media industries: the case of tel...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  45. From garment to fashion production: an analysis of the evolution of th...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  46. Simulation Model of Cultural Industry Agglomeration Based on SD-System...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  47. Creativity and the crisis: The impact of creative workers on regional ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  48. Beyond the bubbles: Creative New York in boom, bust and the long run
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  49. Climate Change Policies of City Governments in Federal Systems: An Ana...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  50. The geography of celebrity and glamour: Reflections on economy, cultur...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  51. Seeing the Outer Suburbs: Addressing the Urban Bias in Creative Place ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  52. GLOBAL MEDIA CITIES IN TRANSNATIONAL MEDIA NETWORKS
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  53. Review of Culture Industry Agglomeration on the Influencing Factors, C...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  54. We're Number Two! Beta Cities and the Cultural Economy
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  55. Measuring the Creativity of a City: A Proposal and an Application
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  56. Institutions and Sectoral Logics in Creative Industries: The Media Clu...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  57. The Emergence of Los Angeles as a Fashion Hub...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  58. Emerging cities of the third wave
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  59. The Great Divide: Economic Development Theory Versus Practice-A Survey...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  60. Governance of a Growing Creative Industry Cluster: A Case Study on Bro...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  61. Entrepreneurial Growth and Labour Market Dynamics: Spatial Factors in ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  62. Ouverture de ‘Global Cities and Knowledge Management - 2’
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  63. Large Cities, Intangible Consumption and Knowledge Production
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  64. Cultural capital and metropolitan distinction: Views of Los Angeles an...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  65. Metropolis on the margins: talent attraction and retention to the St. ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  66. Creative cities and cultural spaces: new perspectives for city tourism
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  67. Istanbul as a world city: a cultural perspective
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  68. The geography of buzz: art, culture and the social milieu in Los Angel...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  69. Arts and Culture in Urban or Regional Planning: A Review and Research ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  70. Two Cities, Five Industries: Similarities and Differences within and b...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  71. There goes the metro: how and why bohemians, artists and gays affect r...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  72. What to Make of New York's New Economy? The Politics of the Creative F...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  73. Bohemia as Subculture; “Bohemia” as Industry...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  74. Urban governance in the knowledge-based economy: Challenges for differ...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  75. Density and Creativity in U.S. Regions
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  76. Patterns of Knowledge: The Geography of Advanced Services and the Case...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  77. Recent perspectives in the economics of the arts
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  78. Regional Occupational and Industrial Structure: Does One Imply the Oth...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  79. The Distinctive City: Divergent Patterns in Growth, Hierarchy and Spec...
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar
  80. Supplying What?
    Go to citation Crossref Google Scholar

Figures and tables

Figures & Media

Tables

View Options

Get access

Access options

If you have access to journal content via a personal subscription, university, library, employer or society, select from the options below:

Alternatively, view purchase options below:

Purchase 24 hour online access to view and download content.

Subscribe to this journal

Access journal content via a DeepDyve subscription or find out more about this option.

Start 2 week free trial
Need help?

View options

PDF/ePub

View PDF/ePub
Download PDF

Also from Sage