Consumer Preferences and Selected Socioeconomic Variables Related to Physical Adequacy of Housing

Abstract

To a large extent, the adequacy of physical conditions of housing is considered to be associated with the consumer's preferences for alternative consumption items and various socioeconomic characteristics of that consumer. The relationships of housing adequacy to race, town, tenure, wife's education, occupational prestige of the head of household, family income, and preferences for long‐ and short‐range alternatives to housing were analyzed to determine which socioeconomic conditions and preferences were related to housing adequacy. The sample consisted of 361 females in two culturally different, small Louisiana communities with less than 6,500 populations. Orthogonal factor analysis of the attitude items, followed by least squares analysis of variance or simple linear correlations, where statistically appropriate, was used to determine significant differences in the adequacy of housing factor scores. Housing was significantly less adequate for blacks, for those living in the north Louisi ana community, and for those who lived in rented houses. The families of females who possessed lower levels of education and the families of males who worked at jobs with lower occupational prestige also lived in less adequate housing. The females who did not prefer to spend their resources on long‐range alternatives to housing lived in less adequate housing. Thus, both socioeconomic variables and consumer preferences were directly associated with housing adequacy. The theoretical proposition that consumer preferences serve as an attitudinal link between the socioeconomic variables and housing adequacy was not supported by our data. The socioeconomic variables were related to housing adequacy but not generally related to consumer preferences. Only the socioeconomic variable, town, was related to consumer preferences.

Investigating dimensions of housing adequacy evaluation by residents in public housing

“…Looking at empirical studies on adequate housing, Zey-Ferrell et al, (1977) examined the relationships between housing adequacy and the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of 361 females in two Louisiana communities in the US. That study found that housing was significantly less adequate for (i) blacks (ii) those living in the north Louisiana community (iii) renters (iv) families of females who possessed lower levels of education (v) males who worked at jobs with lower occupational prestige; and (vi) females who did not prefer to spend their resources on long-range alternatives to housing.…”

“…However, the studies by Morton et al, (2004) and Bonnefoy (2007) indicate that among these concepts, housing adequacy remains one of the least investigated. Zey-Ferrell et al, (1977) identified the adequacy of housing environment as having direct link with occupants' housing preferences and their socio-economic characteristics. Other studies (e.g.…”

Poverty and the Quality of the Housing: Construction of Index Using FFDP Approach

“…Similarly, various studied have constructed housing index by using different housing facilities. See, for example, Hatch and Laura, (1998), Herrin et al, (2013), Nazli et al, (2003) and Zey-Ferrell et al, (1977) Herrin et al (2013) estimated the relationships between housing quality and occupant health using "count outcome" regression models consistent with the economic model and other empirical work, the results show that exposure to burning of biomass for cooking has the largest adverse health effect. Zainal et al, (2012) examined the relationship between housing conditions and the quality of life of the urban poor in Malaysia.…”

Perceived Adequacy of Resources: Development of a Scale

“…Crosby (1970) has examined the relationship between perceived levels of living and family welfare. Perceived normative housing deficits have been studied by Morris and Winter (1978), and consumer perceptions of housing adequacy have been researched by Zey-Ferrell, Kelley, and Bertrand (1977).…”