Perceived social disorder in suburban housing estates in the Helsinki region: a contextual analysis

Teemu Kemppainen,Perttu Saarsalmi

doi:10.51815/fjsr.110732

Abstract

Deindustrialisation has severely hit Finnish suburban housing estates of the 1960s and 1970s, and socio-economic differences between neighbourhoods have increased. The social disorganisation theory suggests that neighbourhood disadvantage is a risk factor for problems related to social order. This article compares perceptions of social disorder in suburban housing estates compared to other kinds of neighbourhood. Perceived social disorder appears to be most common in the suburban housing estates built in the 1960s and 1970s, somewhat less common in other high-rise neighbourhoods, and clearly least common in low-rise areas. Neighbourhood disadvantage predicts perceived social disorder, which partly explains these differences.

Highlights

Concern over segregation and selective migration has appeared in Finnish scholarly (Kytö 2013; Vilkama et al 2013) and policy (Kiuru 2011; Hallituksen esitys 2014; Viitanen 2014) discussions
The research questions are: 1) Do suburban housing estates differ from other kinds of residential contexts in perceived social disorder?
We found that perceived social disorder was most common in the suburban housing estates of the 1960s and 1970s, somewhat less common in other high-rise neighbourhoods, and clearly the least common in the low-rise areas

Summary

Introduction

Concern over segregation and selective migration has appeared in Finnish scholarly (Kytö 2013; Vilkama et al 2013) and policy (Kiuru 2011; Hallituksen esitys 2014; Viitanen 2014) discussions. In colloquial Finnish, the suburban housing estates (‘lähiö’) of the 1960s and 1970s connote a variety of social problems. Given that selective migration can aggravate neighbourhood disadvantage (Andersson & Bråmå 2004), problems of order may get worse, and the spiral is theoretically completed. Social order is the key to understanding the future of suburban housing estates and, more generally, the differentiation dynamics in the capital region of a Nordic welfare state in the process of de-industrialisation. The aim in this study is to shed light on this topic via an empirical examination of perceived social disorder in the Helsinki region, and the comparison of suburban housing estates with other kinds of neighbourhood. The research questions are: 1) Do suburban housing estates differ from other kinds of residential contexts in perceived social disorder?. 2) If they do, does socio-economic disadvantage of the neighbourhood explain the difference?

Background and concepts

Conclusion and discussion

Findings

I: Bivariate