A Multidimensional Scaling Analysis of Individual Differences in Residential Area Evaluation

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Abstract
A major stumbling block in behavioral research on residential mobility is the difficulty of specifying the decision process at the level of the individual. Multidimensional scaling analysis was used to analyze individual differences in residential area evaluation. Dimensions of attribute importance that describe related clusters of residential attributes are derived and the importance assigned to each dimension is calculated for each person. The method is illustrated with data derived from a questionnaire survey of women in Hamilton, Canada. Residential areas were evaluated in terms of 4 dimensions referring to the preponderance of residential land uses, lot size, social character and housing quality. Stage in the family life cycle affects the importance assigned to selected dimensions. The evidence suggests that increasing compensatory preference models may not be appropriate for analyzing residential preferences.

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