The Scale of Dissimilarity: Concepts, Measurement and an Application to Socio‐Economic Variation Across England and Wales
01 Dec 2000-Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers (Blackwell Publishing Ltd)-Vol. 25, Iss: 4, pp 465-481
TL;DR: In this article, the scale and extent of uneven distributions in space for a wide range of census variables are considered and a solution to calculate the index of dissimilarity is presented.
Abstract: The paper considers the scale – the measure, extent, and dimension – of uneven distributions in space for a wide range of census variables. While the traditional ‘index of dissimilarity’ is affected by random as well as social factors, a solution presented here allows the index to be calculated even for very small populations. Small areas across England and Wales tend to be fairly similar demographically but quite diverse on ethnic and socio-economic measures. Differences between areas become more noticeable as we move from districts, to wards, to enumeration districts, but the rate of differentiation depends heavily on the variables considered.
Citations
More filters
TL;DR: This paper examined self-segregation and polarised communities with data unique to the city of Bradford and first results from the UK population census and found that dispersal of South Asian populations has taken place at the same time as absolute and relative growth.
Abstract: Subsequent to riots in UK northern cities, claims of self-segregation and polarised communities are examined with data unique to the city of Bradford and first results from the UK population census. Statistics relating to race often reinforce misleading stereotypes that are unhelpful to the development of appropriate social policy. Previous studies of indices of segregation are shown to be inadequate through lack of consideration of change over time and the confounding of population change with migration. The separation of natural change and migration supports survey evidence that dispersal of South Asian populations has taken place at the same time as absolute and relative growth. Social policy will do well to take on board these demographic facts in a positive inclusive approach to all residents in all areas.
233 citations
TL;DR: The residential segregation of ethnic groups in urban areas remains an issue of importance for policy-making in multicultural societies, such as England's, with levels of segregation frequently occurring as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The residential segregation of ethnic groups in urban areas remains an issue of importance for policy-making in multicultural societies, such as England's, with levels of segregation frequently lin...
198 citations
Cites background from "The Scale of Dissimilarity: Concept..."
...(Correction factors can be applied to take account of size: see Voas and Williamson, 2000.)...
[...]
TL;DR: The effect of immigration on social cohesion is a political issue, expressed as a fear that racially skewed residential patterns represent ghettos which prevent integration as mentioned in this paper, and residential patterns have been measured by indices of segregation.
Abstract: The effect of immigration on social cohesion is a political issue, expressed as a fear that racially skewed residential patterns represent ghettos which prevent integration. Residential patterns have been measured by indices of segregation. The range of indices is reviewed in the paper and measured empirically for England and Wales by using census data for 1991 and 2001, including a new index of migration dispersal. There has been an increase in residential mixing as a result of growing minority populations and their more even spread across localities. These two trends are identified by two commonly used indices of segregation which are moving in opposite directions for the most recent immigrant groups. The sensitivity of each index to modifiable area boundaries makes them unsuitable for evaluation of cities' relative performance. The residential patterns of cities after immigration are more clearly understood by using demographic measures of migration and age structure.
166 citations
Cites background from "The Scale of Dissimilarity: Concept..."
...Voas and Williamson (2000) discussed an appropriate downward adjustment of ID when the population of a group is small relative to the number of areas in the region that is under study....
[...]
...Voas and Williamson (2000) discussed an appropriate downward adjustment of ID when the population of a group is small relative to the number of areas in the region that is under study....
[...]
TL;DR: This article examined the relative strengths of the cross-cutting variables of religion and ethnicity and found that Islam binds together peoples of different ethnicity or whether ethnicity links groups despite religious differences in London Muslims.
Abstract: The paper examines the relative strengths of the cross-cutting variables of religion and ethnicity. British Muslims are often referred to as if they were a single community. The 2001 Censuses of England and Wales and Scotland demonstrate that Muslims are ethnically heterogeneous. Ethno-religious ward-level data for London from the 2001 census are used to test whether Islam binds together peoples of different ethnicity or whether ethnicity links groups despite religious differences. London Muslims, as a whole, are much less segregated than Sikhs, Jews or Hindus. Paradoxically this low level of overall segregation is produced by high intra-Muslim ethnic segregation. Intra South-Asian mixing irrespective of religion is greater than intra-Muslim mixing, irrespective of ethnicity. Intra-Black mixing is high irrespective of religion, while religion over-rides race and ethnicity for Christian groups.
124 citations
TL;DR: A multilevel modeling approach that is simultaneously capable of assessing multigroup and multiscale segregation in the presence of substantial stochastic variation that accompanies ethnicity rates based on small absolute counts is developed and applied to 2011 census data for London.
Abstract: We develop and apply a multilevel modeling approach that is simultaneously capable of assessing multigroup and multiscale segregation in the presence of substantial stochastic variation that accompanies ethnicity rates based on small absolute counts. Bayesian MCMC estimation of a log-normal Poisson model allows the calculation of the variance estimates of the degree of segregation in a single overall model, and credible intervals are obtained to provide a measure of uncertainty around those estimates. The procedure partitions the variance at different levels and implicitly models the dependency (or autocorrelation) at each spatial scale below the topmost one. Substantively, we apply the model to 2011 census data for London, one of the world’s most ethnically diverse cities. We find that the degree of segregation depends both on scale and group.
104 citations
Cites background from "The Scale of Dissimilarity: Concept..."
...…within the United States (from region down to census tract) but also decomposed those levels to identify the relative importance of each (see also Voas and Williamson 2000; Johnston et al. (2003) and Fowler (2015) both also made the case for a multiscale approach but like those just referred to,…...
[...]
References
More filters
TL;DR: In this article, residential segregation is viewed as a multidimensional phenomenon varying along five distinct axes of measurement: evenness exposure concentration centralization and clustering, and 20 indices of segregation are surveyed and related conceptually to 1 of the five dimensions.
Abstract: This paper conceives of residential segregation as a multidimensional phenomenon varying along 5 distinct axes of measurement: evenness exposure concentration centralization and clustering. 20 indices of segregation are surveyed and related conceptually to 1 of the 5 dimensions. Using data from a large set of US metropolitan areas the indices are intercorrelated and factor analyzed. Orthogonal and oblique rotations produce pattern matrices consistent with the postulated dimensional structure. Based on the factor analyses and other information 1 index was chosen to represent each of the 5 dimensions and these selections were confirmed with a principal components analysis. The paper recommends adopting these indices as standard indicators in future studies of segregation. (authors)
2,833 citations
2,323 citations
01 Jan 1986
TL;DR: The relationship between measures of population diversity and measures of segregation are shown, to describe the salient properties of these indexes, and to demonstrate the empirical interrelationships among them.
Abstract: The purposes of the present paper are to show the relationship between measures of population diversity and measures of segregation to describe the salient properties of these indexes and to demonstrate the empirical interrelationships among them. Some measures not frequently used in population studies are considered and empirical illustrations are given of the significance of using one measure rather than another. In particular the author stresses proportional reduction of error interpretations for an index and considers its ability to handle more than two groups. The primary geographic focus is on the United States. The "introductory section of the paper treats conceptual issues in more detail. The second section reviews selected measures and recent critical viewpoints while the third section tests their empirical performance. The conclusion makes some recommendations about the selection of an index. A detailed bibliography follows." (EXCERPT)
526 citations
TL;DR: The authors compare British levels of segregation with those experienced by African Americans in the United States and find that British levels are much lower than those found in the USA and, for the Black Caribbean population, they are falling.
Abstract: compare British levels of segregation with those experienced by African Americans in the United States. British levels of segregation are much lower than those found in the USA and, for the Black Caribbean population, they are falling. South Asian levels of segregation are higher than for the Caribbean population but show considerable internal variation. Bangladeshis, the most recently arrived of the groups, show the highest levels of encapsulation, followed by the Pakistanis, while Indian rates are relatively modest. Indirect standardization indicates that the contribution of economic factors to the observed levels of segregation is not substantial.
343 citations