Regional variation in household income

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to determine the scale of intervoivodship variation in terms of the level of household income, taking into account the sources of this income. To evaluate regional differences related to the economic situation of households, the authors used data on the sources and level of income per person in a household in a voivodship. Average values of income for each identified source were calculated on the basis of microdata from the 2016 Household Budget Survey carried out by Statistics Poland. For the purpose of the study, the authors employed k-medoid method, one of non-hierarchical techniques of division. It was demonstrated that of all the diagnostic features adopted in the study, it was the level of income from permanent employment abroad which differentiated among particular clusters of voivodships to the largest extent. The average value for this feature in cluster 2 was PLN 5000,70 per person in the household. The performed grouping of voivodships showed that the extent to which households search for additional sources of income depends on the economic potential of the region and available opportunities.