Is there a Connection between Welfare State Regime and Dwelling Type? An Exploratory Statistical Analysis

Abstract

This exploratory paper tests whether there is a relationship between the nature of a particular society (represented by its welfare state regime), and the characteristics and appreciation of the single-family dwellings and the apartments within this society. In order to grasp differences in the nature of societies, the study uses the welfare state typology of Esping-Andersen (with the addition of a Mediterranean welfare state regime). In this (adapted) typology, four different welfare state regime types are distinguished: a social-democratic welfare state regime, a corporatist welfare state regime, a liberal welfare state regime and a Mediterranean welfare state regime. Different statistical techniques are used to investigate the relationship between welfare state regime type and dwelling type. First, a number of bivariate tables are presented that indicate how the incidence, tenure category, quality and the appreciation of single-family dwellings compared to apartments differ between welfare state regimes. Subsequently, there is an analysis of the bivariate relations between these aspects. To find out whether the typology of Esping-Andersen really is a useful classification system with regard to the characteristics and appreciation of single-family dwellings as against apartments, a cluster analysis is conducted. The clusters that result from this analysis are interpreted and compared with the typology of the four welfare state regimes. Based on the results of these statistical analyses, some conclusions are drawn and some directions for further research are outlined.