Multivariate analysis for exploring sub-municipal deprivation of Italian municipalities
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71014/sieds.v80i4.536Abstract
This study presents a multivariate analysis of nine individual indicators representing socio-economic deprivation at the sub-municipal level, based on data from 25 Italian municipal-ities. The aim is to investigate the internal heterogeneity of urban areas by examining the statistical properties and interrelationships of indicators reflecting different dimensions of local deprivation.
The first phase explores the distributional characteristics of the individual indicators, high-lighting asymmetries, heavy tails, and outliers. Particular attention is given to extreme val-ues, which may reveal critical conditions in specific urban zones and influence the robust-ness of conventional statistical summaries.
Principal Component Analysis is then applied to synthesise the complexity of the infor-mation, allowing dimensionality reduction and the identification of latent structures under-lying the data. Findings highlight recurring patterns of socio-economic disadvantage com-mon to several urban contexts, as well as context-specific vulnerabilities pointing to shared structural issues.
The ultimate goal is to provide a statistical rationale for selecting the individual indicators used to compute the composite sub-municipal deprivation index. At the same time, the study offers a concise and interpretable representation of spatial disparities, with potential to inform local policy and planning interventions.
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