@prefix vivo: . @prefix edm: . @prefix ns0: . @prefix dcterms: . @prefix skos: . vivo:departmentOrSchool "Arts, Faculty of"@en, "Geography, Department of"@en ; edm:dataProvider "DSpace"@en ; ns0:degreeCampus "UBCV"@en ; dcterms:creator "Schmidt, Martin"@en ; dcterms:issued "2010-02-05T18:11:52Z"@en, "1975"@en ; vivo:relatedDegree "Master of Arts - MA"@en ; ns0:degreeGrantor "University of British Columbia"@en ; dcterms:description "Residential differentiation can be studied at a variety of scales, depending upon the objectives of the investigator. The premise for this study is that the basic factors involved can be more precisely isolated when examined at the level of residential units. When differentiation is regarded as the outcome of households seeking to satisfy very specific and personal needs and preferences, a more accurate basis can be established upon which decision makers can form policies concerning the creation of residential environments required in today's urban settings. It is evident from a review of literature that differentiation has not been very systematically analyzed at this level the ecological approach having been traditionally favored over the behavioral approach. With the support of only a few essentially descriptive studies, the basis of the argument is that when selection from alternatives is possible, households will attempt to choose their dwelling to \"match\" their present or intended pattern of living. Increasingly, a variety of dwelling types and tenure arrangements is possible in the market. Also, households are presented with increasing numbers of alternatives for the expenditure of their time and money. Through a process of comparative evaluation of perceived and real needs and wants, and the relative merits of competitive dwelling types, a selection is made. At the \"city scale\", the repetition of this process by numerous households yields a pattern of differentiation which is considered to be identifiable in terms of residential structures. The activity pattern or \"way-of-living\" of a household was regarded as an overt expression of its needs and wants, and referred to as its \"lifestyle\". This term was operationalized in terms of the dwelling or non-dwelling-unit orientation of the household's activities. Competitive conventional single-family houses and condominium townhouses were chosen as the sample units. Empirical research was undertaken to determine if residential differentiation by lifestyle and dwelling type would occur in a predictable manner. Structured interviews were conducted with a random sample of pre-qualified households in Greater Vancouver using time-activity budgets for recording and categorizing their activities (either \"dwelling\" or \"non-dwelling\" unit oriented). The data collected were analyzed, using percentage tables and graphs. It was revealed that no clear relationship existed between a household's activity orientation and its choice of a particular dwelling type. The hypothesis was therefore rejected. Further refinement in definition and operationalization of the variable \"lifestyle\", the use of a much broader sample, and more comprehensive use of time-activity budgets will be necessary in subsequent research to properly conclude whether differentiation does occur in the terms set forth here. From the study it was learned that personal attitudes toward such matters as \"ownership and equity\", and \"control over personal physical environment\" may be even more critical than actual behavior in effecting choices among dwelling alternatives (economic factors being constant). The investigation of psychological and social (overt behavior) traits combined is recommended to gain a fuller understanding of voluntary spatial differentiation among households."@en ; edm:aggregatedCHO "https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/19659?expand=metadata"@en ; skos:note "RESIDENTIAL DIFFERENTIATION and LIFESTYLES by MARTIN SCHMIDT B.A., U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia, 1970. A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS i n the Department o f GEOGRAPHY We accept t h i s t h e s i s as conforming to the r e q u i r e d standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA August, 1975 In presenting th i s thes is in pa r t i a l fu l f i lment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the Un ivers i ty of B r i t i s h Columbia, I agree that the L ibrary sha l l make it f ree ly ava i l ab le for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of th is thes is for scho lar ly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representat ives. It is understood that copying or pub l i ca t ion of th i s thes i s fo r f i nanc ia l gain sha l l not be allowed without my wr i t ten permission. Department of Geography The Univers i ty of B r i t i s h Columbia 207S Wesbrook Place Vancouver, Canada V6T 1WS Date August 22, 1975. ABSTRACT R e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n can be s t u d i e d a t a v a r i e t y of s c a l e s , depending upon the o b j e c t i v e s of the i n -v e s t i g a t o r . The premise f o r t h i s study i s that the b a s i c f a c t o r s i n v o l v e d can be more p r e c i s e l y i s o l a t e d when examined at the l e v e l of r e s i d e n t i a l u n i t s . When d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i s regarded as the outcome of households seeking t o s a t i s f y very s p e c i f i c and p e r s o n a l needs and p r e f e r e n c e s , a more a c c u r a t e b a s i s can be e s t a b l i s h e d upon which d e c i s i o n makers can form p o l i c i e s concerning the c r e a t i o n of r e s i d e n t i a l en-vironments r e q u i r e d i n today's urban s e t t i n g s . I t i s ev i d e n t from a review of l i t e r a t u r e t h a t d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n has not been very s y s t e m a t i c a l l y a n a l y z e d a t t h i s l e v e l the e c o l o g i c a l approach having been t r a d i t i o n a l l y f a v o r e d over the b e h a v i o r a l approach. With the support of only a few e s s e n t i a l l y d e s c r i p -t i v e s t u d i e s , the b a s i s of the argument i s t h a t when s e l e c t i o n from a l t e r n a t i v e s i s p o s s i b l e , households w i l l attempt to choose t h e i r d w e l l i n g to \"match\" t h e i r p r e s e n t or intended p a t t e r n of l i v i n g . I n c r e a s i n g l y , a v a r i e t y of d w e l l i n g types and tenure arrangements i s p o s s i b l e i n the market. A l s o , households ©-re p r e s e n t e d w i t h i n c r e a s i n g numbers o f a l t e r n a t i v e s f o r the expenditure of t h e i r time and money. X X I Through a process of comparative e v a l u a t i o n of p e r c e i v e d and r e a l needs and wants, and the r e l a t i v e m e r i t s of c o m p e t i t i v e d w e l l i n g types, a s e l e c t i o n i s made. At the \" c i t y s c a l e \" , the r e p e t i t i o n of t h i s process by numerous households y i e l d s a p a t t e r n of d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n which i s c o n s i d e r e d to be i d e n t i f i a b l e i n terms of r e s i d e n t i a l s t r u c t u r e s . The a c t i v i t y p a t t e r n or \" w a y - o f - l i v i n g \" of a house-h o l d was regarded as an o v e r t e x p r e s s i o n of i t s needs and wants, and r e f e r r e d to as i t s \" l i f e s t y l e \" . T h i s term was o p e r a t i o n a l i z e d i n terms of the d w e l l i n g or n o n - d w e l l i n g - u n i t o r i e n t a t i o n of the household's a c t i v i t i e s . C o m p e t i t i v e c o n v e n t i o n a l s i n g l e - f a m i l y houses and condominium townhouses were chosen as the sample u n i t s . E m p i r i c a l r e s e a r c h was undertaken to determine i f r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n by l i f e s t y l e and d w e l l i n g type would occur i n a p r e d i c t a b l e manner. S t r u c t u r e d i n t e r v i e w s were conducted with a random sample of p r e - q u a l i f i e d households i n Greater Vancouver u s i n g t i m e - a c t i v i t y budgets f o r r e c o r d i n g and c a t e g o r i z i n g t h e i r a c t i v i t i e s ( e i t h e r \" d w e l l i n g \" or \"non-dwelling\" u n i t o r i e n t e d ) . The data c o l l e c t e d were analyzed, u s i n g percentage t a b l e s and graphs. I t was r e v e a l e d that no c l e a r r e l a t i o n s h i p e x i s t e d between a household's a c t i v i t y o r i e n t a t i o n and i t s c h o i c e of a p a r t i c u l a r d w e l l i n g type. The hypothesis was t h e r e f o r e r e j e c t e d . i v F u r t h e r refinement i n d e f i n i t i o n and o p e r a t i o n a l i z a -t i o n of the v a r i a b l e \" l i f e s t y l e \" , the use of a much broader sample, and more comprehensive use of t i m e - a c t i v i t y budgets w i l l be necessary i n subsequent r e s e a r c h t o p r o p e r l y conclude whether d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n does occur i n the terms s e t f o r t h here. From the study i t was l e a r n e d that p e r s o n a l a t t i t u d e s toward such matters as \"ownership and e q u i t y \" , and \" c o n t r o l over p e r s o n a l p h y s i c a l environment\" may be even more c r i t i c a l than a c t u a l b e h a v i o r i n e f f e c t i n g c h o i c e s among d w e l l i n g a l t e r n a t i v e s (economic f a c t o r s being c o n s t a n t ) . The i n v e s t i g a t i o n of p s y c h o l o g i c a l and s o c i a l ( o v e r t behavior) t r a i t s combined i s recommended to gain a f u l l e r understanding of v o l u n t a r y s p a t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n among households. V TABLE CF CONTENTS T i t l e Page i Abstract i i Table of Contents v L i s t of Tables x i L i s t of Figures xix L i s t of Maps x i i i L i s t of Appendices xiv Acknowledgements xv CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1 A. THE CONCEPT OF RESIDENTIAL DIFFERENTIATION 1 1. Al t e r n a t i v e Emphases 1 2. The Importance of Understanding processes 2 3. The Role of the Household 3 B. SELECTED APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF DIFFERENTIATION 4 1. Behavioral versus Human Eco l o g i c a l . . . 4 2. The L i f e s t y l e Concept 4 a. context of usage 5 b. scale of application 6 c. objective . . . . . 6 C. METHOD OF STUDY 6 D. ORGANIZATION OF CHAPTERS 7 v i CHAPTER TWO REVIEW: DIFFERENTIATION LITERATURE i n t r o d u c t o r y remarks 9 A. HUMAN-ECOLOGICAL APPROACH 10 1. T h e o r e t i c a l Treatment 10 2. A p p l i c a t i o n to the Urban Landscape . . . . 11 a. support from s p a t i a l a n a l y s t s . . . . 13 b. o p p o s i t i o n from s o c i o - c u l t u r a l view 15 3. Summary and C o n c l u s i o n s 15 B. BEHAVIORAL APPROACH 16 1. Background 16 2. P o s t u l a t e s of the Approach 17 3. A p p l i c a t i o n to the Study of R e s i d e n t i a l D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n 19 4. The D i f f e r e n t i a t i n g Process 19 a. r o l e of the 'plac e u t i l i t y ' concept 19 b. b a s i c f a c t o r s i n the moving d e c i s i o n 20 c. the search 23 5. S p a t i a l Outcomes of the Process 26 C. COMPARING THE TWO APPROACHES: a comment 27 D. LIFESTYLE 29 1. I n t r o d u c i n g the Concept 29 2. Treatment i n the L i t e r a t u r e 30 a. focus on the i n d i v i d u a l 31 b. focus on the group 35 3. L i f e s t y l e Trends and U t i l i t y of the Concept 40 v i i CHAPTER THREE REVIEW: CONDOMINIUM STUDIES introductory remarks 44 A. 1964 U.S. SELECTED AREA STUDY 45 B. 1969 C.M.H.C. REPORT 46 C. 1969 ONTARIO SURVEY 49 D. 1970 CANADIAN NATIONAL SURVEY 53 E. 1971 GREATER VANCOUVER SURVEY 56 F. 1972 GREATER VANCOUVER BUYER SATISFACTION STUDY 58 G. 1972 GREATER VANCOUVER MEDIUM-DENSITY HOUSING STUDY 61 H. 1973 GREATER VANCOUVER SURVEY 63 I. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 68 CHAPTER FOUR METHOD OF RESEARCH introductory remarks 72 A. STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS 72 B. DEFINITION OF TERMS 73 C. SELECTING STUDY UNITS 74 D. DETERMINING STUDY AREAS 80 E. DETERMINING THE UNIVERSE 84 1. Accounting for Qualifiable Condominium Units 84 2. Accounting for Qualifiable Single-Family Units . 87 F. SELECTING A RESEARCH TECHNIQUE 89 1. The Interview Schedule 90 ft. the time-activity budget 91 v x i x G. SAMPLING PROCEDURE 94 1. The Sampling Technique 95 H. DATA COLLECTION 95 CHAPTER FIVE ANALYSIS i n t r o d u c t o r y remarks 97 ORGANIZATION OF ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION ON CONTENT 97 S e c t i o n One 98 S e c t i o n Two 99 A. SECTION ONE: HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTIC COMPARISONS 101 1. B i o g r a p h i c a l Data 101 a. age and c h i l d d i s t r i b u t i o n s . . . . 101 b. l e v e l o f education 102 c. household income 102 d. occupations 103 e. work l o c a t i o n s 104 2. Housing E x p e r i e n c e 105 a. du r i n g c h i l d h o o d and adolescence . . 105 ( i ) country of o r i g i n and s i z e s of communities l i v e d i n . . . . 105 ( i i ) d w e l l i n g types and tenure arrangements experienced . . . . 107 b. housing experience s i n c e marriage . 107 ( i ) . d w e l l i n g types experienced and m o b i l i t y 107 ( i i ) s e a r c h b e h a v i o r p r i o r to making c h o i c e 108 ( i i i ) l e n g t h of occupancy i n pr e s e n t d w e l l i n g 110 ( i v ) purchase p r i c e , downpayment and a b i l i t y to spend more . . . 110 3. A n t i c i p a t e d Housing During Next F i v e Years 112 a. d w e l l i n g l o c a t i o n and c h o i c e s a t i s f a c t i o n 112 i x b. a n t i c i p a t e d moves, d w e l l i n g types and p r e f e r r e d l o c a t i o n s 113 4. Summary and Co n c l u s i o n s 114 B. SECTION TWO: HOUSEHOLD ACTIVITY ORIENTATION COMPARISONS 116 1. Assignment of A c t i v i t i e s to Ca t e g o r i e s 117 2. p r e s e n t a t i o n of F i n d i n g s 118 a. townhouse (TH) and s i n g l e - f a m i l y (SF) a c t i v i t y o r i e n t a t i o n s . . . . 118 b. d i s c u s s i o n of households by a c t i v i t y o r i e n t a t i o n s and d w e l l i n g types 119 ( i ) townhouse sample 119 ( i i ) s i n g l e - f a m i l y sample 121 3. Summary and Co n c l u s i o n s 121 CHAPTER SIX CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS i n t r o d u c t o r y remarks 124 A. PROBLEM AREAS: A LOOK BACK AND LOOKING AHEAD 124 1. Timing of Research 124 a. u n f a m i l i a r i t y w i t h condominium concept and recency of purchase . . 124 b. e f f e c t of i n f l a t i o n a r y t r e n d i n r e a l e s t a t e values 126 2. Data C o l l e c t i o n w i t h . T i m e - A c t i v i t y Budgets 128 3. Independent V a r i a b l e : LIFESTYLE . . . 129 B. MOVING BEYOND THE BEHAVIORAL APPROACH . . . 131 1. B e h a v i o r a l Bases of D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . . 131 2. A t t i t u d i n a l Bases of D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . 132 C. A NOTE ON VALUE AND APPLICATION 134 X D. A PARTING WORD 135 Literature Cited 136 Appendix A 142 Appendix B 153 Appendix C 155 x i L i s t of Tables Table I Table II Table III Table IV Table V Table VI Table VII Table VIII Table IX Table X Table XI Table XII Table XIII Table XIV 'Condominium Townhouse Developments Q u a l i f i e d for Sampling Purposes\" 'Age and Chi l d Ratio Comparisons\" 'percentage Reaching Different Education Levels\" 'Percentage of Households i n Different Income Brackets\" 'Percentage D i s t r i b u t i o n of Respondents by Occupation Category\" 'Percentage of Respondents Working i n Di f f e r e n t Locations\" 'Percentage of Households Living i n Diff e r e n t Sizes of Communities\" 'Dwelling Types and Tenure Arrangements Experienced\" 'Percentage of Households Occupying Different Dwelling Types and Length of Occupancy i n Each\" 'Mean Number of Locations Searched and percentage of Times Dwelling Type was Considered\" 'Mean Purchase Price and Downpayment\" percentage of Households Capable of Spending More and Amount Extra\" Percentage of Households S a t i s f i e d • with Dwelling and Location\" percentage of Households Anticipating a Move and Dwelling Type Preferred\" 86 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 111 112 112 113 L i s t of Figures Figure 1 \"Commonly Cited Lifestyle Components\" Figure 2 \"Comparison of Time Spent in Non-Dwelling Unit-Oriented Activity\" Figure 3 \"Comparisons of Time Spent in Non-Dwelling Unit-Oriented Activity by Dwelling Type and Location\" x i i i L i s t of Maps Map 1 \"Greater Vancouver Market Areas S t u d i e d w i t h C o m p e t i t i v e Condominium Townhouses and S i n g l e - F a m i l y D w e l l i n g s \" 83 Map 2 \"Greater Vancouver L o c a t i o n s of Condominium Townhouse Developments and S i n g l e - F a m i l y U n i t s i n Survey\" 85 x i v L i s t of Appendices Appendix 'A' Appendix • B' \"In t e r v i e w Schedule\" \"General C l a s s i f i c a t i o n of p r i n c i p a l C l a s s e s of Household A c t i v i t i e s \" 142 153 Appendix »cf \"Household C h a r a c t e r i s t i c Comparisons by Market Area and Dwelling Type\" 155 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many i n d i v i d u a l s generously a s s i s t e d the w r i t e r at v a r i o u s stages d u r i n g the r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t . Developers, r e a l t o r s and m u n i c i p a l p l a n n i n g o f f i c i a l s k i n d l y s u p p l i e d maps, p l a n s , and market data. F e l l o w graduate students M a r t i n T a y l o r and Warren G i l l served as w i l l i n g l i s t e n e r s d u r i n g the p l a n n i n g stage. Approximately s i x t y households o f f e r e d t h e i r time, t h e i r h o s p i t a l i t y and t h e i r p e r s o n a l i n f o r m a t i o n which made the p r o j e c t p o s s i b l e . Dr. Walter Hardwick's adv i c e kept the study o b j e c t i v e - o r i e n t e d . H is con t i n u e d support and guidance was i n v a l u a b l e . Dr. John Mercer's c r i t i c a l review o f the f i n a l d r a f t l e d to necessary refinements, and f o r t h i s the w r i t e r i s g r a t e f u l . My w i f e , P h y l l i s , made a tremendous c o n t r i b u t i o n by r e a d i n g d r a f t c o p i e s , o f f e r i n g c r i t i c i s m , and most i m p o r t a n t l y , by being p a t i e n t ! To Mrs. Lin d a Northey who t o i l e d f a i t h f u l l y to f i n a l l y produce t h i s , a s p e c i a l thanks! CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION A. THE CONCEPT OF RESIDENTIAL DIFFERENTIATION 1. Alte r n a t i v e Emphases Residential areas have held the i n t e r e s t of numerous researchers, both i n academic d i s c i p l i n e s and professional groups. While most studies concentrate either on (1) r e s i d e n t i a l land use i n terms of i t s l o c a t i o n r e l a t i v e to other uses (e.g. land economics), (2) the physical structures (e.g. planners, a r c h i t e c t s ) , or (3) the inhabitants (e.g. sociology), urban geographers have attempted to examine the s p a t i a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s between these elements. In the very broadest sense, t h i s study i s concerned with the s p a t i a l manifestation of urban household characteris-t i c s . This i s e s s e n t i a l l y what r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i s difference i n r e s i d e n t i a l settings (e.g. urban and suburban areas, communities, neighborhoods or dwelling units i n terms of economic, c u l t u r a l , s o c i a l , behavioral or other characteris t i c s ) . According to Tiroms (1971, p. 250), no general theory of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n has yet been formulated. Nor i s he opt i m i s t i c that a general theory would be successful. D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i s simply too complex an interchange of forces — - some s t a t i c , some dynamic. He states, \"attempts to understand the d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n must span a wide range of systematic l e v e l s and must transgress many t r a d i t i o n a l d i s c i p l i n a r y boundaries.\" In accounting f o r d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n , an investigator must r e a l i z e that economic, s o c i a l and psychological f a c t o r s - 2 -are involved and each deserves consideration. 2. The Importance of Understanding Processes A major objective of studies dealing with r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n should be to understand those factors most c r i t i c a l i n e f f e c t i n g the observed s p a t i a l patterning of households. Where geographic studies are concerned, Harvey asserts that t h i s has not always been the case. He claims that, \"Most research i n geography, u n t i l recently, has tended to be concerned with the c o l l e c t i o n , ordering and c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of data...\" (Harvey, 1969, p. 78). I t should not be assumed, however, that such research orientations have been f r u i t l e s s . Studies of t h i s nature could be regarded as having provided a 'cataloguing' ox 'stocktaking' contribution, from which subsequent studies could draw data and i n s i g h t with respect to l o c a t i o n a l differences i n s o c i a l and physical c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . In moving away from e s s e n t i a l l y observation and des c r i p t i o n , geographers are pursuing the more complex task of 'understanding through objective a n a l y s i s ' . While an accurate description of physical and s o c i a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s at one location or a set of locations i s e s s e n t i a l , an under-standing of various types of processes which have worked and are working together to produce observed patterns of d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n must be sought. The processes may be h i s t o r i c , c u l t u r a l , s o c i a l , economic, behavioral or any of these i n combination. When the objective of a study of d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n has pragmatic 3 overtones, as i n the case of establ i s h i n g r e s i d e n t i a l de-velopment p o l i c i e s i n a metropolitan area (e.g. decisions regarding the mixture of de n s i t i e s , dwelling types, e t c . ) , a thorough knowledge of those processes which sort out house-holds i s e s p e c i a l l y c r i t i c a l . 3. The Role of the Household I t i s contended that i n r e s i d e n t i a l studies generally, the household has usually been cast i n a passive r o l e . A h o s t ^ of external s o c i a l and economic influences or forces are portrayed as determining i t s l o c a t i o n and dwelling. Probably t h i s i s most apparent i n the human ecolo g i c a l approach, which w i l l be contrasted with the behavioral approach i n the l i t e r a t u r e review. Considerably l e s s frequently, the household has been regarded as an agent a c t i v e l y a f f e c t i n g the process of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n by revealing i t s preference f o r one r e s i d e n t i a l s i t u a t i o n over another. Johnston (1971, p. 197) points out that the i n d u s t r i a l i z a t i o n and urbanization experienced by thi s and other developed s o c i e t i e s has meant that, \" . . . f o r the f i r s t time, i n d i v i d u a l s and family groups could choose from various methods of organizing t h e i r l i v e s . \" It seems reasonable to assume that the manner i n which one chooses to organize h i s l i f e i s somehow related to the physical and s o c i a l s e t t i n g i n which one chooses to reside. In the pursuit of knowledge regarding the r e l a t i o n s h i p between s o c i a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s and the physical s e t t i n g , Rushton (June, 1968, p. 361) claims that geographers are becoming more aware of the influence of human decisions. He states they are, \"...becoming increasingly interested i n describing behavioral processes and the s p a t i a l patterns which they generate. One such behavior pattern which contributes to s p a t i a l structure i s the way people make choices between al t e r n a t i v e s over an area.\" B. SELECTED APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF DIFFERENTIATION 1» Behavioral Rather Than Human-Ecological Since the human-ecological approach contends that observed d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i n r e s i d e n t i a l areas i s e s s e n t i a l l y regulated by involuntary constraints (e.g. economic f a c t o r s only), i t cannot be s e n s i t i v e to the e f f e c t which i n d i v i d u a l preference and choice has upon the s p a t i a l pattern. Hence, the research undertaken here w i l l approach d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n from the behavioral p o s i t i o n , which to date has received the least amount of attention. 2. The L i f e s t y l e Concept . Recognizing that d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n has been demon-strated at the macro-urban scale i n terms of socio-economic and c u l t u r a l dimensions generally, the question to be researched here i s : \"Can the urban population be s p a t i a l l y d i f f e r e n t i a t e d according to l i f e s t y l e s ? \" F u l l e r treatment of t h i s concept w i l l be reserved f o r the following chapter, but some introductory notes regarding i t s context of usage are needed here. Although t h i s term has been treated i n a va r i e t y of descriptive ways i n s o c i a l science work, i t has seldom been used as a concept f o r systematic research. Michelson (1970, p. 2), one of the pioneers i n the a p p l i c a t i o n of t h i s term as - 5 an independent variable i n urban studies, suggests the following reason for t h i s : \"A s t y l e which i s recognizable i n i d e a l - t y p i c a l terns may be d i f f i c u l t to i d e n t i f y objectively or d e f i n i t i v e l y . It i s not e a s i l y q u a n t i f i a b l e . And because i t has t r a d i t i o n a l l y been employed as an evaluative and c l a s s i f i c a t o r y ( i . e . de-s c r i p t i v e , not a n a l y t i c a l ) concept, i t has been assumed to have l i t t l e u t i l i t y as an independent variable i n accounting f o r other behavioral phenomena.\" a. context of usage The f i r s t cautionary note i s that ' l i f e s t y l e ' must not merely be a substitute f o r the general term 'socio-economic c h a r a c t e r i s t i c ' . I t must r e f e r to a unique arrange-ment or set of c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s which allow i t to be independent of the above term, e l s e , d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n a t t r i b u t e d to l i f e -s t y l e s may i n f a c t only be differences i n socio-economic status, family status or some other construct. Michelson (1970, p. 19) o f f e r s d i r e c t i o n here. He suggests l i f e s t y l e i s , \"...the configuration of r o l e s (and concomitant predisposition to behavior) which i n d i v i d u a l s choose to emphasize from a larger number of p o s s i b i l i t i e s . \" This suggests a 'pattern-of-living * d e f i n i t i o n which should be able to go beyond the t r a d i t i o n a l and more objective d i f f e r -e n t i a t i n g c r i t e r i a , although i t would embrace the economic, s o c i a l and c u l t u r a l f a c t o r s of an i n d i v i d u a l or household. E s s e n t i a l elements of the l i v i n g pattern are money and time-spending behaviors, which, over time, assume r e l a t i v e l y consistent patterns. In order that such behaviors can have relevance to the problem of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n 6 -for the geographer however, they must have s p a t i a l referents. b. scale of application Data on l i f e s t y l e s must necessarily come from indivi d u a l s and have relevance to a s p e c i f i c physical s e t t i n g . The choice here i s to examine the use of time by households with respect i t s expenditure i n and around the dwelling unit or elsewhere. While the a l l o c a t i o n of money i s also considered to be of great importance, the envisaged task of dealing with the problem of disclosure seemed too complex to handle within the l i m i t a t i o n s of t h i s study. c. objective The aim of t h i s study then, i s to show by empirical research that when households have r e a l choice alte r n a t i v e s among dwelling types ( i . e . are capable of affording more than one s p e c i f i c type i n one given l o c a t i o n ) , they w i l l be d i f f e r e n t i a t e d by the emphasis they place on one or another set of a c t i v i t i e s , being th e i r l i f e s t y l e . Given the problems of sel e c t i n g an appropriate general and operational d e f i n i t i o n fo r the l i f e s t y l e concept, t h i s research w i l l be more of a p i l o t study providing new i n s i g h t s , rather than one which produces f i r m conclusions. C. METHOD OF STUDY Selected suburban households throughout Greater Vancouver found i n neighborhoods where surrounding development was of si m i l a r age, qua l i t y and p r i c e , but d i s s i m i l a r i n terms of the types (single-family house versus the condominium townhouse), have been chosen for i n v e s t i g a t i o n . The inherent - 7 -c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the condominium-owned dwelling makes i t a unique a l t e r n a t i v e to a conventional house, and the p o s s i b i l i t i e s of i t meeting the needs of a d i f f e r e n t market segment make i t most suitable f o r a comparative analysis such as t h i s . The argument to be supported i s t h i s : discretionary time expenditures ( i . e . on non-work, non-chore a c t i v i t i e s ) of households i n the conventional type w i l l be dwelling unit oriented, and non-dwelling unit-oriented i n the other. The survey method was selected f o r the c o l l e c t i o n of biographical and time expenditure data, using the personal interview technique. D. ORGANIZATION OF CHAPTERS Selected l i t e r a t u r e pertaining to the two contrasting approaches i n studying r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i s presented i n the following chapter. Discussion and supporting material dealing with the l i f e s t y l e concept i s incorporated into the section which examines the behavioral approach to under-standing d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . Studies on condominium r e s i d e n t i a l development, the housing form which presumeably w i l l evoke new s t y l e s of l i v i n g , are c r i t i c a l l y reviewed i n Chapter Three. Chapter Four presents the methods used i n determining the sample of households to be studied, as well as the techniques and instruments used i n data c o l l e c t i o n . An analysis of the findings i s made i n Chapter F i v e , while Chapter Six presents the conclusions drawn and - 8 -suggestions for refining future work concerning residential differentiation and l i f e s t y l e s . CHAPTER TWO REVIEW; DIFFERENTIATION LITERATURE introductory remarks As stated e a r l i e r , r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n studies have not primarily concentrated on the household but on economic and s o c i a l conditions enveloping i t . These have been depicted i n such a manner that households appeared to become sorted i n accordance with some predetermined scheme. The writer contends that the increasing popularity of the behavioral approach has i n large part been a reaction to the i n s e n s i t i v i t y of the human-ecological or any economic oriented approach which downplays the importance of the i n d i v i d u a l ' s tastes and preferences i n the s p a t i a l d i s t r i b u t i o n of households. In order to show the behavioral approach as a c l e a r l y contrasting viewpoint on the subject, as well as display i t s relevance for use here, the human-ecological approach i s presented f i r s t . The manner i n which t h i s approach i s supported by s p a t i a l analysts i s also indicated. Discussion of the behavioral approach follows. I t w i l l argue that the 'fine grain' r e s i d e n t i a l pattern i s l a r g e l y the r e s u l t of an i n d i v i d u a l search and decision process i n i t i a t e d by the household unit. Included i n t h i s section i s the examination of the l i f e s t y l e concept. Arguments concerning i t s t h e o r e t i c a l bases and relevancy to empirical research i n geographic studies are presented, as are research antecedants using t h i s concept. 10 A. HUMAN-ECOLOGICAL APPROACH 1. Theoretical Treatment F i r s t popularized during the 1920's by the Chicago school of e c o l o g i s t s , the basic notion regarded human lo c a t i o n a l behavior as analagous to the differentiation and d i s t r i b u t i o n behaviors exhibited among plant and animal species. Locational aspects of each were characterized by the same factor or 'sorting mechanism' — impersonal competition. Ho1lingshead (1939, p.62) states that, \"Human ecology deals with society i n i t s b i o l o g i c a l and symbiotic aspects, that i s , those aspects brought about by competition and by struggle of in d i v i d u a l s i n any s o c i a l order, to survive and perpetuate themselves.\" The development of pattern, structure and organiza-t i o n are among those aspects r e s u l t i n g from competition and struggle among in d i v i d u a l s i n a given s o c i a l order. S p e c i f i c a l l y r e f e r r i n g to r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a -t i o n , Hawley (1944, p. 403) supports the view that pattern, structure, and organization are d i r e c t r e s u l t s of economic competition among households of p a r t i c u l a r l o c a t i o n s . He asserts that, \"Rent, operating through income, i s the most important factor i n the d i s t r i b u t i o n and segregation of f a m i l i a l u n i t s . Those with comparable incomes seek s i m i l a r locations and consequently cluster together i n one or two selected areas within the community.\" Timms (1971, p. 89) argues that, i n practice \"...the c l a s s i c a l ecologists were by no means as g u i l t y of r e i f y i n g the b i o l o g i c a l analogy, and of using i t as the sole explanation of ecolog i c a l structure, as some of the c r i t i c s have claimed.\" 11 -Evidence to support t h i s defence may be found i n a statement by Park (1925, p. 29): \" . . . i n human society, competition i s l i m i t e d by custom and culture. The c u l t u r a l super structure imposes i t s e l f as an instrument of d i r e c t i o n and control upon the b i o t i c sub-structure.\" Undoubtedly, there has been a c e r t a i n amount of disagreement over the extent to which the urban physical and s o c i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n pattern i s a consequence of competition, r e f e r r i n g of course to economics. Murdie (1971) notes that t h i s approach has become i d e n t i f i e d as 'economic determinism'. In i t s a p p l i c a t i o n , the p r a c t i t i o n e r s have paid very l i t t l e attention to the r o l e which human behavior (a derivative of custom and culture) plays i n the d i s t r i b u t i o n and d i f f e r -e n t i a t i o n process. 2. Application to the Urban Landscape The ec o l o g i c a l approach to understanding urban s p a t i a l structure i s found i n Burgess' Concentric Zone Model of urban structure. Based primarily on observations of Chicago, i t showed that with population increases the e c o l o g i c a l f a c t o r s of competition, dominance, and succession operated so as to produce an outward, concentric arrangement of land uses and population c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . This was e s s e n t i a l l y a crude, descriptive model, seeking to explain the organization of the urban framework i n terms of ec o l o g i c a l processes. Households became located according to t h e i r socio-economic status. (see Rees, 1970, p. 307 for a good elaboration on the resultant pattern of households). 12 -Perhaps seeking to add a sense of dynamism to t h i s theory, Colby (1933) explained that e c o l o g i c a l balance i n the structure i s maintained by the functioning of c e n t r i f u g a l and c e n t r i p e t a l forces. With reference to households, c e r t a i n features near the centre are i n i t i a l l y a t t r a c t i v e (e.g. employment, the l o c a t i o n of ' l i k e * i n d i v i d u a l s , suitable r e n t a l housing, e t c . ) , but l a t e r other features there may seem unattractive (e.g. noise, population density, a i r p o l l u t i o n , e t c . ) . Thus, the households are spun outward to a suburban residence. Hoyt's Sector Theory (1939) also received i t s energizing force from deterministic economic fac t o r s with regards to r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . On the basis of census data from 142 United States c i t i e s , he showed high and low status r e s i d e n t i a l areas were s e c t o r a l l y ordered around the C.B.D. (The Park and Burgess model showed a concentric arrangement of household c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s ) . Focusing on high-c l a s s households, he indicated that they chose those areas for e s t a b l i s h i n g their homes which were the most desireable i n a l l respects. The less-competitive households acquired the remaining s i t e s . Johnston (1966, p. 23) notes that, according to t h i s model, \"...the high-status area becomes the pivot of the c i t y ' s r e s i d e n t i a l structure.\" Hoyt did observe that the use of such devices as deed r e s t r i c t i o n s by high income households could serve to maintain the character of an area. However, the somewhat mechanistic nature of h i s model was not able to accommodate such behavioral considerations. - 13 -Only i n an i m p l i c i t way did Harris and Ullman's (1945) work deal with the urban s o c i a l topography generally, and the l o c a t i o n of r e s i d e n t i a l areas i n p a r t i c u l a r . Con-centrating on economic a c t i v i t i e s , the two geographers proposed a Multiple-Nuclei model, recognizing that c e r t a i n functions w i l l tend to c l u s t e r . Rather than one point being e n t i r e l y dominant, several f o c a l points would evolve, around which the c i t y would develop. Presumeably, the c r i t e r i a f o r r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n would become more complex. Any single house-hold c h a r a c t e r i s t i c would not be so r e a d i l y geographically associated with any s p e c i f i c f a c t o r , such as economics. a* support from s p a t i a l analysts Insofar as the 'spatial analysts' share the economics-biased theme i n their explanations of urban structure, they could be said to provide support f o r the human-ecological viewpoint. A b r i e f look at some of the f a c t o r s they stress as instrumental i n e f f e c t i n g r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n w i l l reveal their r e l a t i o n s h i p . In reviewing Wingo's work, Chapin (1964) points out that the organizing concept of these analysts i s the 'market mechanism'. Households with p a r t i c u l a r a b i l i t i e s to pay rents become d i s t r i b u t e d among those locations demanding corresponding rents. Muth (1961, p. 215) stresses t h i s point: \"The most important variable a f f e c t i n g the average household consumption of housing i n a metropolitan area i s income.\" Since land prices usually decrease with distance from the dominant centre, he would assert, land consumption - 14 per unit increases. This i s evidenced by the general density-decline gradient outward from the C.B.D. (see Clark, 1951; an excellent example i s Chicago — - see Berry and Horton, 1970, p. 444). T y p i c a l l y , the s p a t i a l analysts d i f f e r e n t i a t e household c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s and locations i n the following manner: wealthy households occupy large tracts on the f r i n g e , and poorer households maintain small quarters near the center. C l e a r l y , the factor of a c c e s s i b i l i t y i s involved here since high a c c e s s i b i l i t y i s regarded as a c o s t l y 'good*. The remote, wealthy households trade i t o f f for expansive residences, while others must l i v e closer to their workplaces t y p i c a l l y the C.B.D.. Stegman (1969) takes exception to models which stress the notion that households place a high value on a c c e s s i b i l i t y , and allow i t to become a dominant consideration i n t h e i r location choice. With respect to mover households, data collected from 841 units i n the United States between 1960 and 1966 showed that only an average of 5% (central as well as suburban households) of the moves were attempts to increase a c c e s s i b i l i t y to t h e i r work. Most were rel a t e d to dwelling needs, neighborhood conditions and more personal reasons. To say then that r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n occurs as r e g u l a r l y as theorized s t r i c t l y i n terms of income and distance from c i t y center, i s d i f f i c u l t to support when we consider the suburbanization of work places and shopping f a c i l i t i e s . Furthermore, i t should be remembered that de-- 15 -cis i o n s concerning the l o c a t i o n of one's residence are always tempered by non-optimizing human behaviors. The extent to which they are involved can only be determined by adopting an intensive, individual-focused research approach, b. opposition from a s o c i o - c u l t u r a l view Fi r e y (1947) was the most noteable opponent of the ideas embodied i n the eco l o g i c a l approach. Drawing on h i s study of Boston's history of growth and development, he claimed that economic fact o r s did not determine i t s pattern. Sentiment and symbolism attached to p a r t i c u l a r locations (e.g. Boston Common, prestigous Beacon H i l l ) and buildings (e.g. downtown churches) were c u l t u r a l factors of great importance i n estab l i s h i n g i t s form. The operation of such factors over-shadowed the p r o f i t or savings-maximizing notions of urban land economics. Perhaps the severity of F i r e y * s c r i t i c i s m was un-j u s t i f i e d , f o r he sought to challenge very general models on the basis of what may have been a unique case indeed. However, h i s contribution was valuable i n terms of bringing attention to the f a c t that c i t i e s are not s o l e l y products of the interplay between economic f a c t o r s . 3. Summary and Conclusions It i s apparent that the human-ecological approach has i t s maximum u t i l i t y when one chooses to examine d i f f e r -e n t i a t i o n on the scale of an entire c i t y , or more p r e c i s e l y , an urban area. There can be l i t t l e doubt that at t h i s l e v e l , the major determinants of land use locations w i l l also serve to s p a t i a l l y organize households. T y p i c a l l y , these are economic - 16 -factor s operating through the 'market mechanism'. C e r t a i n l y , a household's income w i l l e s t a b l i s h the broad l i m i t s of i t s actual l o c a t i o n choice. Consequently, d i s t i n c t s p a t i a l d i v i s i o n s may be found to approximate the patterns suggested by the models. From th i s approach, however, l i t t l e can be learned of the fa c t o r s which produce the fine-grained differences among r e s i d e n t i a l locations which we observe d a i l y as we move throughout the c i t y . They are supposedly not soley economic, nor even e n t i r e l y based on class p o s i t i o n s . To understand d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n at the scale of our experiences, the house-holds themselves must serve as the units f o r ana l y s i s . We must take into account i n d i v i d u a l ' s personal c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , and the approach which must be adopted f o r th i s type of r e -search i s reviewed next. B. BEHAVIORAL APPROACH 1. Background Pred (1967/1969, p. 10) stated that u n t i l recently, geographers have \" . . . f a i l e d or refused to regard any s p a t i a l d i s t r i b u t i o n , or array of economic features on the landscape, as the aggregate r e f l e c t i o n of i n d i v i d u a l decisions.\" A p a r t i a l explanation of t h i s , he suggests, may be the i n -fluence which Sauer (1941, p. 7) had on geographers by making such statements as, \"Human geography, ...unlike psychology and hi s t o r y , i s a science that has nothing to do with i n d i v i d u a l s but only with human i n s t i t u -tions or cultures.\" - 17 Harvey (1969) pointed out however, that f o r a long time some geographers have recognized geographic patterns to be the 'end products' of many d i f f e r e n t decisions made for as many reasons. He notes that even as early as 1912, Bruhnes (1920) challenged h i s 'environmental deterministic' contempor-ari e s by stressing that the psychological influences of geographical phenomena upon humans was the subtle and d i s -tinguishing factor i n human geography. Regardless of the length of history of t h i s approach, only recently has i t attracted the int e r e s t of researchers seeking to use i t i n an a n a l y t i c a l fashion. Generally, the objective f o r i t s use i s to not only describe but derive explanations for s p a t i a l structure i n terms of ..antecedant decisions and behaviors which arrange phenomena over space.\" (Cox and Golledge, 1969, p. 2.) With respect to the geographical inference problem of form and process as Olsson (1969) notes, t h i s approach i n f e r s s p a t i a l patterns from analyzing behavior rather than the reverse — the approach of ecologists and s p a t i a l analysts. 2. Postulates of the Approach In the a r t i c l e c i t e d above by Cox and Gollege (1969), i t i s pointed out that research i s carr i e d on at two comple-mentary l e v e l s ; the basic l e v e l i s the search f o r appropriate postulates and models for dealing with behavior independent of i t s s p a t i a l component, and the next l e v e l i s the app l i c a t i o n of these to the study of actual behavior i n r e a l space. 18 Postulates i n use are primarily derived from the d i s c i p l i n e s of economics, sociology and psychology. Again, i n the same writing, these researchers assert that economics has had the greatest influence to date. Their example i s the work of Brown and Longbrake (1969), who view the outcome of intra-urban migration decisions as maximization of the u t i l i t y of a selected place to a household. This, of course, assumes optimizing behaviors. Hagerstrand (1953) looked to sociology f o r assistance i n analyzing migration behavior i n Sweden, recognizing that information about possible destinations was f a c i l i t a t e d by interpersonal r e l a t i o n s with former migrants. Perception studies such as Kates' (1967) research on storm hazards along the United States east coast, Lynch*s (1960) investi g a t i o n of mental images of urban landscape, or Petersen's (1967) work on preferences f o r r e s i d e n t i a l neighborhoods, have drawn d i r e c t l y and heavily from psychology i n the r e a l i z a t i o n that overt behavior i s largely a consequence of learning, motivation and other psychological constructs (see Wood, 1967, for a concise review of perception studies i n geography). While research adopting the behavioral approach i s concerned with numerous and diverse emphases, they have unity i n their mutual focus on the i n d i v i d u a l or household. An excellent c o l l e c t i o n of a r t i c l e s may be found i n Cox and Golledge (1969). - 19 -3. Application to the Study of Residential D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n The behavioral approach takes the p o s i t i o n that d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n results from each household making a variety of decisions concerning i t s housing needs and wants, and then acting upon them. That 'act' f o r some would i n f a c t be to remain i n t h e i r present location. The majority of households a r r i v e at some higher degree of s a t i s f a c t i o n by making a move. D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i s consequently a function of intra-urban mobility, i t s e l f occuring as a r e s u l t of house-holds engaging i n behavioral processes such as, (1) housing need and want assessment, (2) search and evaluation, and (3) choice. while certain of the components of the process have been conceptualized i n the context of interurban migration studies, they are of relevance here i n that they are related to i n d i v i d u a l s and households. 4. The D i f f e r e n t i a t i n g process a. r o l e of the 'place u t i l i t y ' concept In discussing various aspects of his proposed migration model, Wolpert (1965) points out that an under-standing of the process i s based on the acceptance of the notion that man i s 'intendedly r a t i o n a l ' , or 'boundedly r a t i o n a l ' . In accepting t h i s , one avoids overlooking the important f a c t that man i s limi t e d i n his a b i l i t y to perceive, - 20 -acquire, and assimilate information. However, he i s able to d i f f e r e n t i a t e between various types of action to take i n terms of their usefulness ( u t i l i t y ) or anticipated usefulness f o r him. Every realm of his experience can be subjectively weighted with respect to the s a t i s f a c t i o n i t gives him. When experience indicates that an anticipated l e v e l of s a t i s f a c t i o n i s not being attained, a process i s set i n motion to adjust the experience to reach the minimum s a t i s f a c -tion threshold. While this ' u t i l i t y ' concept may be adapted to a variety of stayer-mover decisions (e.g. a person's job), concern here i s with i t s application to a household's residence. Again, on the basis of experience, a place either 'measures up' to some minimum s a t i s f a c t i o n l e v e l or does not. Distant locations are not so e a s i l y assessed, f o r they have not been experienced. The p o t e n t i a l mover must determine the i r u t i l i t y for him on the basis of whatever knowledge he has or i s able to receive about them. The degree to which anticipated housing needs and wants are ever s a t i s f i e d at some new location i s a consequence of the e f f i c i e n c y of (1) t h e i r correct assessment, and (2) the search process, b. basic factors i n the moving decision:; Wolpert (1965, p. 163) states that s t i m u l i re-sponsible for setting the process i n motion are either - 21 -objective or subjective, and originate i n the p o t e n t i a l mover's 'action space', being \"...that part of the l i m i t e d environment with which the i n d i v i d u a l has contact.\" •Limited environment' includes both r e a l and perceived space. In developing a model of the migration decision, Wolpert (1966, p. 93) suggests that the root cause can be regarded as 'stress', defined as \"... 'noxious' or p o t e n t i a l l y 'noxious' environ-mental forces pressing upon the i n d i v i d u a l . \" He c i t e s a more comprehensive d e f i n i t i o n given by Bngel: \"... a stress may be any influence, whether i t arises from the i n t e r n a l environment or the external environment, which i n t e r f e r e s with the s a t i s f a c t i o n of basic needs or which d i s -turbs or threatens to disturb the stable equilibrium.\" An individual's reaction to stress i s what Wolpert refers to as \" s t r a i n ' . The manner i n which these function to e f f e c t a move, and thereby a f f e c t r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n , can be seen i n the example which follows: Concerning migration and s o c i a l status, Rossi (1955, p. 179) stated that \"Residential mobility...plays a role i n ' v e r t i c a l ' s o c i a l mobility. The location of a residence has a prestige value, and i s to some degree a determinant of personal contact p o t e n t i a l s . Families moving up the 'occupational ladder' are p a r t i c u l a r l y s e n s i t i v e to the s o c i a l aspects of location and use r e s i d e n t i a l mobility to bring their residences into l i n e with t h e i r prestige needs.\" - 22 -F i r s t of a l l , note that the household here i s considered as placing great value on s o c i a l prestige. I t does so to the point where i t may even be perceived as a need which must be properly housed ( t h i s relates to Bngel's ' i n t e r n a l ' environ-ment). In this case, a job promotion i s associated with greater prestige. Both the household's present location i n the c i t y , and dwelling within i t s neighborhood ('external' environment) may suddenly be out of balance with that need. To the status-conscious, the s i t u a t i o n grows s t r e s s f u l . The household str a i n s to re-adjust the disequilibrium by searching for a more s a t i s f a c t o r y residence (greater place u t i l i t y ) . More frequently the stress i s related to the dwelling unit i t s e l f . The underlying reason f o r t h i s has almost always been a t t r i b u t e d to the process of a household progressing through a f a m i l y - l i f e - c y c l e . Rossi's (1955, p. 150) study on intra-urban mobility was expressed i n terms of t h i s cycle, and i n his conclusion stated, \"...the major function of mobility i s the process by which families adjust t h e i r housing needs that are generated by s h i f t s i n family composi-tion which accompany l i f e cycle changes.\" Lansing and Mueller (1964) found that past and anticipated moves of households surveyed were primarily based on dwelling unit c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s also. Clark's (1968) study of suburban Toronto emphatically asserts that the stimulus to move was a need fo r the type of accommodation only a house i n - 23 the suburbs could provide. Gans1 (1967) study of L e v i t t -owners revealed that 84% had moved to that c i t y f o r s i m i l a r reasons. Bach of these studies indicated that households which are entering the child-bearing and c h i l d - r e a r i n g stages are especially s e n s i t i v e to i n t e r i o r space shortage. This i s the stress i n t h e i r environment which they attempt to over-come through search behavior. Certainly, the number of stimuli or factors which induce households to consider moving are numerous. Simmons (1968, p. 627) points out that \"The preponderance of movers i n the age group f i f t e e n to twenty-five weights the o v e r a l l pattern towards t h e i r p a r t i c u l a r needs and d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n s , but other subpopulations, such as the aged or the residents of a par-t i c u l a r part of the c i t y , may move for quite d i f f e r e n t reasons.\" c. the search Assuming that the household's location and par-t i c u l a r l y dwelling s a t i s f a c t i o n would be increased by moving, the act of searching commences. Brown and Moore (1968, p. 205) suggest the f i r s t step involves making e x p l i c i t the s p e c i f i c requirements for the new location. An abridged l i s t of their examples of categories to consider i s as follows: \"(1) A c c e s s i b i l i t y (to major routes, service centres), (2) physical c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of neighborhood (condition, design, quietness), (3) Services and f a c i l i t i e s (public safety, education), (4) Social environment (socio-- 24 -economic status, minority groups, community outlook), (5) Individual s i t e and dwelling c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s (values, l o t sizes, architec-ture), ...\" Tirams (1971, p. 110) s t r i k e s a sombre note by claiming that, \"Aspirations and behavior rarely coincide.\" He elaborates on this pointed comment: \"The attempt by a household to bring i t s r e s i d e n t i a l location i n t o congruence with i t s ... aspirations may be f r u s t r a t e d by a variety of intervening considerations. P a r t i c u l a r l y important i n this regard i s the range of information possessed by or a v a i l a b l e to the household, the amount of money i t can devote to housing, and the range of houses and locations which are a v a i l a b l e at the relevant time.\" The next major step i s to acquire information about places which might be searched. Discussing the F i e l d Theory approach to searching, Wolpert (1965, p. 163) points out that of the wide geographical space for which the searcher may p o t e n t i a l l y obtain information, i n r e a l i t y only \"...some rather l i m i t e d portion of the environ-ment i s relevant and applicable f o r his deci-sion behavior.\" As noted e a r l i e r , t h i s l i m i t e d portion of the environment i s . what he refers to as the searcher's 'action space'. I t extends over that area about which the searcher has knowledge. In r e a l i t y , t h i s space takes on dimensions as a r e s u l t of personal experience with places, contact with people who have knowledge of s t i l l other places, and the s e l e c t i o n - 25 -of i n d i r e c t media (e.g. newspapers, t e l e v i s i o n , radio, etc.) which provide information about places. In the a r t i c l e quoted above, Wolpert further states that the type and source of information used w i l l produce a biased search pattern, since a l l information i s i t s e l f biased i n substance. The household's search space w i l l consequently be somewhat predefined from the outset. Supposedly, while some locations may be geographically close, they may be per-ceptually distant and w i l l thus be excluded as possible destinations. Timms (1971) refers to this subject by stat i n g that searchers are guided by t h e i r own 'mental maps'. These are image constructs, and one's image of a p a r t i c u l a r urban loca-tion may be favorable or otherwise. Whether they match with r e a l i t y i s not so important to the po t e n t i a l mover. Areas conjuring up unfavorable images w i l l be ruled out as possi-b i l i t i e s , (e.g. r e s i d e n t i a l areas designated as '\"working cl a s s \" , f o r some, \" s n o b h i l l \" , e t c . ) . Elsewhere Timms (1971, p. 115) shows from research c a r r i e d out i n Brisbane, i n which a sample of residents was asked to respond to the names of f i v e suburbs, that \"On the whole, the pattern of responses provides a close p a r a l l e l with the exis t i n g population c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the f i v e suburbs.\" This serves to i l l u s t r a t e that the re l i a n c e upon mental maps can a i d i n rei n f o r c i n g e x i s t i n g patterns of r e s i d e n t i a l - 26 -d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n (see Lynch, 1960, f o r related work). Thus we can assume mental maps serve as subjective guides to the search process and the subsequent patterning of household c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . Obviously, a household considering relocation does not necessarily commence with i s o l a t i n g his s t r e s s f u l s t i m u l i , d e t a i l i n g s p e c i f i c location requirements, nor embarking on a search f o r a new residence as methodically as suggested here. Both the number and order of stages i n the process are highly varied among households. However, i t appears that some underlying ordering mechanisms are operating, and produce r e l a t i v e l y consistent patterns of d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n over time. 5. S p a t i a l Outcomes of the process Upon making reference to migration generally, Simmons (1968) observes that both the d i s t r i b u t i o n and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the population remain amazingly the same in-migrants and out-migrants i n most areas tend to resemble each other. This same observation could be made f o r many intra-urban locations. Cooper (1971) was able to demonstrate t h i s s t a b i l i t y by empirically studying household characteris-t i c s among residents i n two e l i t e sub-communities i n Greater Vancouver. The basic reasons that allow f o r t h i s phenomenon, Rees (1970, p. 375) postulated, are: \" . . . l i k e choices of l i k e i n d i v i d u a l s or f a m i l i e s , catered to by l i k e outputs of the housing market, would produce a set of communities homogeneous - 27 -with respect to the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of th e i r inhabitants, the nature of the housing stock, and by implication with respect to the way people l i v e d within the community.\" Presumeably, households with s i m i l a r c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s would i d e n t i f y similar stimuli as s t r e s s f u l , and, through undertaking a s i m i l a r l y structured search process and a r r i v i n g at l i k e decisions, would produce the postulated r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . Judging this presumption to be an acceptable one, i n that i t provides a reasonable p i c t u r e of the outcome of the entir e process, we should be able to empirically observe geographical association between p a r t i c u -l a r housing types and household c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . C. COMPARING THE TWO APPROACHES a comment By this point the contrast between the two approaches i s evident. I t i s pri m a r i l y r e l a t e d to the scale of d i f f e r -e ntiation being considered, and secondary to the c r i t i c a l elements of the d i f f e r e n t i a t i n g process. The human-ecological approach appears to have i t s greatest relevance at the scale of the entire c i t y . On this l e v e l , economic factors underlying the notions of space competition, succession and invasion (encroachment), and s p a t i a l segregation (e.g. ethnic clustering) are most d i r e c t l y a p p l i -cable to d i f f e r e n t i a t i n g the urban f a b r i c . These factors become less meaningful when the scale of observation i s reduced to the r e s i d e n t i a l sector alone. - 28 -Depending upon factors such as: (a) proximity to the core of an urban area, (b) access to p u b l i c transporta-tion, schools and major shopping centres, (c) nearness to limited amenities l i k e parks, r i v e r s and waterfronts, and (d) views, elevation, as well as presence or absence of uniquely d i s t i n c t natural settings, the values of r e s i d e n t i a l areas vary across the urban landscape. L o g i c a l l y , the p r i c e attached to p a r t i c u l a r locations w i l l be p r o h i b i t i v e to those households with i n s u f f i c i e n t incomes to either buy or rent there. Hence, on a very broad scale, households should be d i f f e r e n t i a t e d i n accordance with t h e i r f i n a n c i a l c a p a b i l i t i e s . The behavioral view maintains that income i s a i necessary but not s u f f i c i e n t factor for explaining d i f f e r -entiation, as i t has generally been depicted by the human ecologists. D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n i n the behavioral view o c c u r s y more v o l u n t a r i l y than i n v o l u n t a r i l y . Thus, human behavior must be an i n t e g r a l part of the whole subject, since numerous other factors are r e a l i s t i c a l l y considered alongside economic considerations i n the matter of choosing one's residence. In the f i n a l analysis, the type of questions one wishes answered w i l l determine the choice of the approach. Questions concerning the influence of l i f e s t y l e s on the s p a t i a l - 29 -d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n of households must begin at the l e v e l or scale of i n d i v i d u a l dwelling u n i t s . To adopt a behavioral approach for studying urban structure i s to accept the idea that the s p a t i a l arrangement of urban functions i s e s s e n t i a l l y the aggregate manifestation of numerous i n d i v i d u a l decisions. We can rea d i l y see that an understanding of human behavior as r e f l e c t e d by l i f e s t y l e s w i l l provide much valuable i n s i g h t into the formation of s p a t i a l patterns. D. LIFESTYLE 1. Introducing the Concept The many aspects of everyday l i f e i n contemporary society have created diverse behavior patterns across the population. These r e f l e c t d i f f e r e n t ways of l i f e and are now commonly referred to as ' l i f e s t y l e s 1 . Discussions i n the l i t e r a t u r e have centered not only around personal l i f e s t y l e s , but on those of groups and cultures. Such references have largely tended to use l i f e -s t y l e as a general, a l l - i n c l u s i v e term with no attempt at precise d e f i n i t i o n . As the contexts of i t s use vary, so do the elements of which the term i s composed. Consequently, any d e f i n i t i o n of the term i s usually broad, vague and imprecise. The widespread use of the term by the broadcast media and writers gives some i n d i c a t i o n of i t s f a m i l i a r i t y and i t s p o t e n t i a l usefulness i n distinguishing among members - 30 -of society. Any examination of the urban population reveals that residents segregate themselves i n various ways. This phenomenon i s r e f l e c t e d i n the choice of r e s i d e n t i a l dwellings and locations. There are many factors which influence each decision and i t i s argued that the various elements of l i f e -s t y l e have some e f f e c t . The immediately i d e n t i f i a b l e problems are those of defining l i f e s t y l e as an operational concept, and then assessing the nature and extent of i t s role i n r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n through the use of some measurement device. The manner i n which these problems are tackled i s discussed i n a l a t e r chapter. The objectives at this point are: (1) to examine the d i f f e r e n t uses of the term i n the l i t e r a t u r e to determine i t s components, (2) to estimate i t s u t i l i t y as a concept f o r use i n studying urban populations i n the l i g h t of general changes taking place i n our society, and (3) to reveal the extent to which the concept has been used i n recent r e s i -d e n t i a l surveys. 2. Treatment i n the Literature L i f e s t y l e has been referred to i n a d i v e r s i t y of contexts (formal as well as informal) and has therefore en-compassed a wide range of variables. Included among these are group and personal values, socio-economic status, stage-in-the-f a m i l y - l i f e - c y c l e , patterns of consumption, and patterns of a c t i v i t y . A graphic portrayal of the various components which have been c i t e d i n the l i t e r a t u r e as co n s t i t u t i n g l i f e -s t y l e i_s. shown i n Figure 1. The composite of variables which l i f e s t y l e represents has largely been determined by the orientation of analysis used. Three d i f f e r e n t focuses f o r analysis have been i d e n t i f i e d i n the l i t e r a t u r e : (1) c u l t u r a l , (2) group, and (3) i n d i v i d u a l . The f i r s t i s generally referred to vaguely as the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c way of l i f e of a whole society (e.g. 'American l i f e s t y l e ' ) . The l a t t e r two are more e x p l i c i t l y treated. Consequently, only these two orientations are dealt with here. a. focus on i n d i v i d u a l s Psychologists were the f i r s t to deal with l i f e s t y l e as a unique i n d i v i d u a l phenomenon. Adler's (1931) d e f i n i t i o n i s perhaps one of the e a r l i e s t . For him, l i f e s t y l e was a \" d e f i n i t e and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c technique f o r combatting the environment i n order to maintain one's l i f e and goal\". This was seen to vary i n accordance with each person's p h y s i c a l constitution, his immediate environment and the era i n which he l i v e d . In these terms, l i f e s t y l e was generally a concept to be used i n connection with studying the behavior of abnormal in d i v i d u a l s , and not a l l types of behavioral dis-positions . Subsequent research looked at l i f e s t y l e i n a f a r broader context regarding i t as any ind i v i d u a l ' s character COMMONLY CITED LIFESTYLE COMPONENTS CONCEPT MAJOR COMPONENTS MINOR COMPONENTS | / 'PERSONALITY' / O F / beliefs / INDIVIDUALS \\ attitudes / AND \\ aspirations / GROUPS LIFESTYLE / SOCIO - ECONOMIC / STATUS / education \\ occupation N. income \\ STAGE \\ IN ^ ages of members \\ FAMILY LIFE CYCLE \\ family size \\ INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP / type \\ ACTIVITIES / frequency N. location \\ ^ interaction FIGURE 1 - 33 -which r e f l e c t e d a unique combination of behavioral t r a i t s . Coleman (1960), i n attempting to achieve some pre c i s i o n i n defining the term so that i t could be operational!zed, spoke of l i f e s t y l e as a \" c h a r a c t e r i s t i c way of doing, thinking, reacting and growing that tends to distinguish persons from each other\". Thus, i t i s considered a predictable (and by implication measureable) form of behavior. A s l i g h t l y d i f f e r e n t approach to l i f e s t y l e r e l a t i n g to.the i n d i v i d u a l focused on the various roles that one played i n everyday l i f e . Havighurst (1957) and Feigenbaum (1959) rated performance of middle-aged persons i n roles of parent, spouse, homemaker, worker, c i t i z e n , f r i e n d , club member and user of l e i s u r e time. Aggregate ratings by several judges on the ' l e v e l ' of r o l e performance were categorized as: (1) balanced-high, (2) home-centred high, (3) home-centred medium, or (4) home-centred low. S i m i l a r l y , Ginzberg (1966) concentrated on an indi v i d u a l ' s orientation to d i f f e r e n t roles (e.g. occupation, i n t e r a c t i o n with others, etc.) as a r e f l e c t i o n of one's value system. His attempt to generate a related l i f e s t y l e typology was l i m i t e d to a subjective assessment of r o l e emphasis as \" i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c \" , \"supportive\", \" i n f l u e n t i a l \" or \"communal\". More recently Michelson (1970) suggested a d e f i n i -tion of l i f e s t y l e as the aggregate of roles integrated i n t o an indi v i d u a l ' s a c t i v i t i e s . He has developed a time-activity - 34 -budget to determine the emphasis placed on the various roles through examining d a i l y and weekly a c t i v i t i e s . Subsequent factor analysis of the data obtained from many in d i v i d u a l s i n a sample of Toronto households i s to provide an objective typology of l i f e s t y l e types. By taking a more rigorous approach to understanding and defining the concept, Michelson's work i s c l e a r l y a pioneering e f f o r t . Hopefully i t w i l l lead to greater c l a r i t y of the term, which w i l l i n turn render i t more applicable to research i n t o urban l i v i n g . Quite understandably the l i f e s t y l e concept has been of i n t e r e s t to a var i e t y of industries, which are concerned with defining consumer p r o f i l e s so that t h e i r products are developed with a certain market i n mind. The consumer psy-chology l i t e r a t u r e i s pertinent here, and indicates s t i l l another type of d e f i n i t i o n i n use. Levy (1967) stated that one's l i f e s t y l e was \"one large, complex symbol i n motion... composed of symbols and...an in d i v i d u a l ' s self-image which he portrays through his consumption habits and patterns.\" Where the focus has been on the i n d i v i d u a l , l i f e -s t y l e has tended to be discussed i n broad and highly descrip-t i v e terms. Usually the ent i r e spectrum of the in d i v i d u a l ' s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s are considered together as one unique 'package'. Emphasis on r o l e performance appears to hold a great amount of p o t e n t i a l f o r empirical work, since only - 35 -those c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s relevant to a p a r t i c u l a r context (e.g. household head, community worker, etc.) are dealt with at any one time. b. focus on groups Much of the l i t e r a t u r e refers to the l i f e s t y l e s of groups or c o l l e c t i v i t i e s of people, such as the household or persons l i v i n g i n the same neighborhood or community. Weber (1962) was a pioneer i n this respect i n his early analysis of s o c i a l s t r a t i f i c a t i o n . To him, 'styles of l i f e ' described a pattern of behavior exhibited c o l l e c t i v e l y by a group or sub-group. D i f f e r e n t s t y l e s were demonstrated by those i n various positions of s o c i a l honor. This resulted from t h e i r d i f f e r -e n t i a l treatment by others according to the perceived amount of honor. Consequently, one's evaluation as a member of a c e r t a i n status group necessitated demonstration of the corresponding s t y l e of l i f e . Inasmuch as s o c i a l status was generally contingent on educational background, those with s i m i l a r t r a i n i n g were considered to have similar l i f e s t y l e s . Thus, any p a r t i c u l a r occupational group constituted a status group, and portrayed a common s t y l e of l i v i n g . Weber noted s t i l l greater d i v e r s i t y i n styles of l i v i n g as the distinguishing feature among classes when s o c i a l status rather than economic factors be-came the primary basis for s t r a t i f i c a t i o n . In this sense then, l i f e s t y l e was regarded as a manifestation of group - 36 -attitudes and actions, and not b a s i c a l l y the display of material possessions. More recent discussions regarding the differences between l i f e s t y l e s of sub-groups (e.g. occupational groups, age cohorts i n the f a m i l y - l i f e - c y c l e ) have given attention to consumption patterns as indicators of th e i r l i f e s t y l e s , however. In p a r t i c u l a r , much of the l i t e r a t u r e centres on the s e l e c t i o n of a r e s i d e n t i a l location and dwelling. Many studies were no doubt prompted by the phenomenon of sub-urbanization which \"came to l i f e \" during the 1940*s and 1950's. This stimulated researchers to examine the 'per-s o n a l i t y 1 of the suburban sub-group. A b r i e f look At a selection of the l i t e r a t u r e should reveal the manner i n which l i f e s t y l e has been considered i n the study of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . It has often been suggested that two major s t y l e s of l i v i n g adequately d i f f e r e n t i a t e d metropolitan populations. These are l a b e l l e d 'urbanism' and 'suburbanism'. That some clear-cut l i f e s t y l e d i s t i n c t i o n i s evident i s suggested by Goldston's (1970) reference to suburbia as a state of l i v i n g which approximates c i v i c denial. Assuming suburban residents to be conformers and primarily members of the middle class, t h e i r l i f e s t y l e s were not su r p r i s i n g l y unlike urban dwellers'. Due to th e i r physical separation, GoIdston claimed suburbanites deprived the urban milieu of their talents and capacity f o r - 37 involvement by their s o c i a l separation. This attitude p a r a l l e l e d Wirth's (1964) comments on urbanism as a way of l i f e (contrasted with suburbanism), which spawned numerous a r t i c l e s by la t e r researchers con-cerning the marked d i s t i n c t i o n s between urban and suburban l i v i n g . Such d i s t i n c t i o n s may have been the case i n the l a t e 1940*s and 1950's but this has greatly changed, largely as a re s u l t of (1) improved transportation networks, (2) pub l i c attitude toward c i t y l i v i n g and community involvement, (3) the d i s t r i b u t i o n of housing types, and a variety of other factors r e l a t i n g to education and communication. Possibly only i n a few contexts are there v a l i d claims that e x p l i c i t urban-suburban differences t r u l y e x i s t . Kstanes and Reissman (1959-60) argued that suburbs were not necessarily homogeneous, and therefore d i d not show evidence of s i m i l a r l i f e s t y l e s . Rather, aside from s i m i l a r l y - p r i c e d houses and fam i l i e s of sim i l a r ages, households i n new developments had very l i t t l e i n common. Donaldson (1969) suggested that the more variables descriptive of a household that one examined, the less homo-geneous a suburb would appear. By including an array of factors to understand l i f e s t y l e differences, B e l l (1968) i s o l a t e d three major l i f e s t y l e types: (1) familism ( i s most strongly represented i n suburban areas given that i t relates to child-centredness and home-based a c t i v i t i e s ) , (2) careerism - 38 -and (3) consuraership (these two are most frequently character-i z e d by urban dwellers primarily involved i n the pursuit of more education related to t h e i r jobs, or i n experiences and entertainment which are purchased downtown). Even i n this typology however, B e l l noted that while certain r e s i d e n t i a l areas may be more condusive to carrying out one pattern of l i v i n g than another (e.g. r a i s i n g children i n low-density rather than high-density areas), any l i f e s t y l e may be practised i n any area. Also, any household may at times stress one s t y l e of l i v i n g over another i n the same area, depending primarily on i t s stage i n the f a m i l y - l i f e - c y c l e . While Lansing and Mueller (1954) as well as Rossi (1955) have empirically demonstrated that the choice of a suburban residence was highly associated with a desire to better f a c i l i t a t e child-rearing, Mowrer (1968) argued that although t h i s may be the i n i t i a l choice factor, the 'familism' l i f e s t y l e probably best applied only during the early stages of settlement into the new surroundings. Some investigators have found, economic considera-tions to dominate over the p u r s u i t of a p a r t i c u l a r pattern of l i v i n g i n the choice of a home. Clark's (1966) Canadian study indicated that the s e l e c t i o n of a suburban location i s almost e n t i r e l y house-related, with emphasis on i t s p r i c e . Any change i n observed l i f e s t y l e s was e n t i r e l y secondary. Kstanes and Reissman (1959-60) supported this view i n stating - 39 -that there i s r e a l l y no such phenomenon as a suburban l i f e -s t y l e . Choosing to l i v e i n a suburb i s a matter of acquiring the 'best house f o r the d o l l a r ' . Suburban areas t y p i c a l l y have the greatest con-centration of modestly-priced new dwellings, as well as the greatest percentage of young f a m i l i e s . These younger home-owners are r e s t r i c t e d as to t h e i r purchase (due p r i m a r i l y to lack of equity build-up), and f i n d opportunities greatest i n suburban areas. In s p i t e of l i m i t a t i o n s on dwelling choice,, however, they are not necessarily as r e s t r i c t e d i n se l e c t i n g a d a i l y l i v i n g pattern. In f a c t , great d i v e r s i t y i n styles i s usually evident. On the basis of this then, no one l i f e s t y l e i s necessarily t y p i c a l of any one r e s i d e n t i a l location, whether a neighborhood or community. Berger (1966) claimed that one's s t y l e of l i f e i s a function of age, income, occupation, education, r u r a l or urban background and previous l i f e ex-periences. It i s the 'summary statement' of a l l that an i n d i v i d u a l i s and has. Further, his study of C a l i f o r n i a working-class suburbs showed that l i f e s t y l e s could be and were transplanted from one location to the next. Dobriner (1968) i d e n t i f i e d two l i f e s t y l e types i n a supposedly homogeneous New York suburb as ' l o c a l ' and 'cosmopolitan'. His p i l o t research showed that marked d i s -t i n c t i o n s did occur i n accordance with the degree of involve-- 40 -ment i n the immediate community. Gans' (1967) c l a s s i c Levittown study also revealed how heterogeneous a suburban community may be, by i d e n t i f y i n g • p r o f i l e s 1 (or l i f e s t y l e s ) f o r three d i s t i n c t sub-groups based on socio-economic class differences. These were the working class, lower-middle c l a s s and upper-middle cl a s s . Elsewhere Gans attempted to d i s -tinguish l i f e s t y l e differences between urban and suburban areas. Such variations as were found related primarily to the a v a i l a b i l i t y of dwellings i n a cert a i n p r i c e range. Some l i f e s t y l e groups were found i n urban areas which would generally not be found i n suburban settings (e.g. ethnic v i l l a g e s or ghettos, deprived slum dwellers, e t c . ) . Aside from such minority groups as these, urban-suburban variations were of minor importance. E s s e n t i a l l y then, as Greer (1962) points out, l i f e s t y l e s cannot be adequately distinguished i n the 'group' fashion since t h i s requires r e l a t i n g s t y l e s to s o c i a l c l a s s , general location i n an urban area, or some other broadly defined c r i t e r i a . Since most l i f e s t y l e s apparently can be found at each status l e v e l and r e s i d e n t i a l location, the distinguishing factors must r e l a t e to i n d i v i d u a l and household behavioral c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . 3. L i f e s t y l e Trends and U t i l i t y of the Concept Studying urban dwellers i n terms of their l i f e s t y l e differences may at one time have been a r e l a t i v e l y uncomplicated - 41 -task. During the early years of this century one's pattern of l i v i n g was largely determined at b i r t h . To a large extent, l i f e was a d a i l y r i t u a l of working and resting, with the emphasis on working. Opportunities f o r achieving higher levels of education, and by association, income, were few. Social d i v i s i o n s were cle a r and impenetrable. Consequently, upward s o c i a l mobility and i t s usually attendant ph y s i c a l mobility ( i . e . r e s i d e n t i a l change) were r e s t r i c t e d . Member-ship i n a p a r t i c u l a r stratum on the socio-economic scale would generally correspond with adherence to a given l i f e s t y l e . At this imaginary point i n time past, the type of tenure and location of one's residence was very strongly related to one's s o c i a l and f i n a n c i a l p o s i t i o n . This was apparently s u f f i c i e n t l y evident to induce the early human ecologists to portray the marked di v i s i o n s of households i n their models of urban structure, use of the concept with a focus on groups seemed appropriate at that time. Except for scattered enclaves of r i c h and poor neighborhoods, today's urban s o c i a l and physical structure i s less segregated. Upon considering the near future, T o f f l e r (1970) boldly envisions our trend toward a highly transitory society. Human relationships, places of l i v i n g and working, and a l l manner of personal possessions are regarded as 'non-permanent'. 'Change' and 'exchange' become the by-words of this super-mobile approach to l i v i n g , and the - 42 -idea of stable or even slowly-changing patterns i n physical and s o c i a l structure w i l l greatly decline i n relevance. Although this imaginary future date appears very r e a l i n some areas, our present patterns of l i v i n g are generally not as 'open' or •loose-ended*. However, with an increasing emphasis on the l i b e r a l i z a t i o n of once-accepted roles by d i f f e r e n t members of society, and consequently the norms of behavior f o r s o c i a l relationships, i t i s under-standable how the s o c i a l d i v i s i o n between various sub-groups are even now being eroded. One major consequence of this encroachment --- one group on the s o c i a l domain of the other i s the physical encroachment upon one another experienced by many groups. That higher levels of education and income are being attained by a wider spectrum of society i s of major s i g n i f i -cance. The attendant higher l i v i n g standard allows an increased freedom of what to do and where to l i v e . Of the growing number of •competitors' f o r a household's or an indiv i d u a l ' s disposable income are non-basics such as l e i s u r e a c t i v i t i e s (e.g. t r a v e l , recreation, entertainment), and educational and c u l t u r a l experiences (e.g. extension study programs, c r a f t s courses, the a r t s , e t c . ) . The i n d i v i d u a l has increased c a p a b i l i t y f o r s a t i s f y i n g preferences among goods and services, thereby expressing his i n d i v i d u a l i t y to a f a r greater extent than ever - 43 -before. Moreover, a person has larger portions of non-work or l e i s u r e time i n which to do so. I t i s i n this context that the l i f e s t y l e concept has i t s greatest u t i l i t y i n the study of urban populations. Each i n d i v i d u a l assembles his own pattern or way of l i v i n g by selecting from the a l t e r n a t i v e a c t i v i t i e s and behaviors which are open and acceptable to him. An individual's r e s i d e n t i a l choice i s considered here to be the best physical indicator of the s t y l e of l i v i n g a person (or household) i s engaged i n or intends to pursue. There i s a l i m i t e d range of r e s i d e n t i a l arrangements (meaning the dwelling and location) which w i l l allow or encourage a given l i f e s t y l e to function. Thus i t i s contended that the l i f e s t y l e concept i s appropriate i n the study of r e s i d e n t i a l choice and, when used i n comparative analysis, r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . The degree to which the concept i s presently being u t i l i z e d i n actual research i s revealed i n the review of studies concerned with r e s i d e n t i a l choice and s a t i s f a c t i o n i n the next chapter. - 44 -CHAPTER THREE REVIEW: CONDOMINIUM STUDIES introductory remarks The introduction of condominium ownership to urban North America d e f i n i t e l y brought economic advantages to households wishing to be homeowners. By v i r t u e of this being a quasi-communal approach to ownership and, since the unit types and project layouts were designed to almost eliminate the need f o r exterior maintenance by in d i v i d u a l households, i t was argued that this new housing a l t e r n a t i v e would also encourage owners to explore new l i v i n g patterns or l i f e s t y l e s . I f the l i f e s t y l e concept would be dealt with i n s p e c i f i c terms anywhere then, i t was believed that i t should appear i n studies re l a t e d to condominium l i v i n g . As many studies as possible were consulted spanning the 1964 to 1974 period. Surprisingly, only a few mentioned the term, although most discussed c e r t a i n reasons f o r pur-chasing and buyer preferences which may be regarded as •c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s descriptive of p a r t i c u l a r l i f e s t y l e s . 1 It must be remembered that almost a l l were essen-t i a l l y 'market surveys', and as such usually do not intensively question or examine the facts they bring to l i g h t . Most were geared to be of d i r e c t use to the professional decision-maker, whether an investor, developer, c i t y planner, s o c i a l planner or p o l i t i c i a n . - 45 -These studies w i l l be reviewed and examined to see whether the l i f e s t y l e concept has been a s p e c i f i c research issue, as well as to see i f ' l i f e s t y l e s a t i s f a c t i o n * has relevance either to developers planning projects or to the buyers. A. 1964 U. S. SELECTED AREA STUDY The objective of thi s report by Plum (1964) and other members of the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration was to present advantages and disadvantages of condominium l i v i n g , and to suggest to concerned professional groups means for ensuring success i n projects. Their research covered developments i n C a l i f o r n i a , I l l i n o i s , New York, F l o r i d a and Puerto Rico these being the \"pioneer areas\" for this type of development i n North America. Considering that the concept was extremely new even i n the U.S., i t i s not surprising that a strong marketing bias was evident. Stress was placed on the features or q u a l i t i e s condominium projects should offer i n order to make them successful ventures (e.g. a l l forms of privacy, design i n d i v i d u a l i t y , e t c . ) . Reference to condominium l i v i n g as providing a 'new l i f e s t y l e opportunity' i s noticeably absent from the report. I t concluded by stat i n g that condominium i s an excellent 'form of occupancy', i n that i t combines three separate s o c i a l trends i n America: (1) rapidly increasing - 46 -population, (2) urbanization of the population with large c i t i e s experiencing the greatest share of housing demand, and (3) desire of American families to own their own homes. Bach of these so-called 'trends 1 i s r e l a t e d to economic factors. The p o s s i b i l i t y of an emerging 'trend* by urban dwellers to be less t i e d to t h e i r dwellings, allowing them to f r e e l y pursue l e i s u r e i n t e r e s t s and yet enjoy a continuing build-up i n equity, has completely escaped the authors. It i s this 'trend' that the research here hopes to i d e n t i f y . B. 1969 CMHC REPORT Being the f i r s t comprehensive report on condominium development i n Canada, this report by the Central Mortgage Housing Corporation consists of a c o l l e c t i o n of a r t i c l e s out-l i n i n g the history and reasons f o r the introduction of this 'new' approach to housing, reports on enabling l e g i s l a t i o n i n each Province, and the views and experiences of lenders, developers and owners. Information from developers and owners was obtained by interviewing a pre-selected sample representing a l l the major urban areas and several major developments west of Toronto. Bach developer reported he had undertaken one or more condominium projects because of i t s economic advantages i n the market place. By 1969, urban r e s i d e n t i a l land costs had i n f l a t e d to a point where lower income buyers ($15 -18,000. unit p r i c e range) could no longer q u a l i f y f o r s i n g l e - 47 -family homes. Most builders f e l t they were losing these po t e n t i a l purchasers, and gladly welcomed the l e g i s l a t i o n i n the i r Provinces permitting this form of ownership. When questioned, most builders agreed that the communal or 'shared* approach to home ownership would also be a t t r a c t i v e to the higher income market, provided that q u a l i t y was of a high standard and that an exclusive location was provided. Largely as a r e s u l t of lender hesitancy towards financing this new form, 'better cla s s ' projects were slow i n appearing. Interestingly enough, most comments concerning the 'appropriateness f o r supporting a new way of l i v i n g ' were made by Vancouver Area developers. They recognized that the success of this housing type was f i r s t a factor of i t s lower p r i c e on a per-square-foot basis of comparison with t r a d i t i o n a l homes, but that acceptance would increasingly be related to the freedom i t offers from exterior maintenance, garden tending, lawn cutting and other chores. The elimina-tion of expenses related to these tasks would resu l t i n added savings and be an additional factor ensuring success. Other comments regarding 'new l i f e s t y l e opportuni-t i e s ' r e l a t e d to the increased community or neighborhood ' s p i r i t ' which would ensue from j o i n t r e s p o n s i b i l i t y and co-operation i n managing the project. Also, the tighter design pattern was envisaged as heightening opportunities for getting to know neighbors and developing new s o c i a l patterns and a c t i v i t i e s . - 48 -These claims must be regarded partly as 'positive marketing attitudes' which c l e a r l y stem from biases adopted by developers anxious to promote this concept to the general p u b l i c and lenders. However, the important point i s that i n spi t e of the appeal to the middle and lower income bracket, developers were aware that inherent i n th e i r product were features which at least provided the framework f o r a new and d i f f e r e n t way of l i v i n g . What remains i s the need f o r research i n t o the actual behavior changes which th i s new form encourages or produces. Only a few owners were interviewed, several being from the same projects. As expected, the ent i r e range of purchase reasons was represented - young marrieds and singles buying primarily f o r economic reasons, a working couple buying f o r a c c e s s i b i l i t y and convenience reasons, an 'empty-nester• couple desiring to spend th e i r free-time on themselves rather than their single-family house and yard, and one young couple buying so as to 'maximize' t h e i r f r e e time. One suspects a bias i n the interviews presented, since only one household d i d not express s a t i s f a c t i o n . A l l others planned to buy a condominium again, even considering that for some, a single-family house was i n range. This a t t i t u d e was found to be inconsistent with a l l other studies examined up to 1973. Generally, the majority has c l e a r l y ex-pressed an intention to buy a house as soon as possible. - 49 -For the respondents interviewed, condominium owner-ship was the 'ideal housing solution', but their experience with i t was too b r i e f f o r this writer to conclude that 'choice' was primarily governed by households trying to s a t i s f y p a r t i c u l a r l i f e s t y l e preferences. C. 1969 ONTARIO SURVEY Prepared by the Associate Consultants Committee for the Urban Development Inst i t u t e ' s workshop sessions, this report was designed to summarize current thinking about problems and the po t e n t i a l of condominium development i n Canada generally and Ontario s p e c i f i c a l l y . No mention was made regarding the information sources, and the reader i s l e f t to presume that i t was based on data c o l l e c t e d through systematic survey techniques. Few condominium projects were i n existence i n Canada by 1969, inasmuch as the f i r s t project was completed only a couple of years before. However, by drawing upon t h i s b r i e f \"Canadian experience\" plus studies of condominium de-velopment i n the U.S., the authors were able to i d e n t i f y two s p e c i f i c socio-economic market sectors: the 'lower-middle income group' and the 'well-to-do older or c h i l d l e s s couple'. The f i r s t group was found to sel e c t t h e i r unit en-t i r e l y f or economic reasons. Probably f o r most i t was t h e i r f i r s t home, and the low down payment and monthly payments ---r e l a t i v e to buying a single-family house - — were obviously important. - 50 -Reportedly, the second group chose their units more for reasons re l a t e d to personal taste and convenience. Unlike the almost exclusively suburban-located lower-middle class group, these buyers preferred c l o s e r - i n projects which per-haps impart the prestigousness of an 'executive* c i t y home, while excluding the drawbacks of exterior building and yard maintenance. The authors pointed out that 'central area' projects were geared toward the luxury market, consisting of \" s i n g l e and c h i l d l e s s families who have money and highly value c u l t u r a l attractions and a c c e s s i b i l i t y to downtown\". (Urban Development I n s t i t u t e 1969, p. 7). Surely t h i s observation lends support to the argument that for groups with some f i n a n c i a l f l e x i b i l i t y , the relationship between a household's 'dominant' l i f e s t y l e and the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the dwelling unit i s an important one. At least that i s the conclusion of a University of C a l i f o r n i a study to which the authors made reference. A survey of condominium owners ca r r i e d out by the Centre f o r Real Estate Economics at Berkeley found that more f r e e time was the most important reason f o r buyers choosing condominium ownership over buying a house. Obviously the increased discretionary time i s a d i r e c t benefit of 'no exterior maintenance' required by the owner. Undoubtedly th i s feature alone was important to the resident types which - 51 -were i d e n t i f i e d i n t h i s p a r t i c u l a r survey, being e l d e r l y people and young, mobile professionals. Comparing the merits of condominium ownership with owning a conventional single-family dwelling, the authors contended that this l a t e s t r e s i d e n t i a l a l t e r n a t i v e would more preci s e l y accommodate the d i v e r s i t y i n households' l i v i n g patterns. They asserted that: (I) The condominium unit i s i d e a l f o r hom©buyers who prefer not to t i e up a l l their assets i n t h e i r house. Lower downpayments and monthly payments •frees up' greater equity f o r investment i n stocks, priva t e businesses, etc. C l e a r l y this s p e c i f i c 'lower cost' advantage i s also what makes i t possible f o r lower income or 'small savings' buyers to graduate from being renters to homeowners. (II) A mobile society demands r e s i d e n t i a l f l e x i b i l i t y . Mobile professional and executive families exhibit l i f e s t y l e s which are not compatible with being t i e d down to \"landscaping and furnishing (or equipping) a new property\", when i t may have to be l e f t behind at any time. Their major investments are mobile (e.g. boats, cars, camping t r a i l e r s ) . A condominium dwelling i s ready to move into when f i r s t acquired, can simply be 'locked up' when t r a v e l l i n g , and i s read i l y disposed of when a move i s necessary. - 52 -(III) Each owner i n a s t r a t a corporation has a c l e a r l y defined 'stake' i n his community the project. Therefore, a 'greater degree of control over and a more d i r e c t chance f o r involvement i n community a f f a i r s w i l l be possible than would normally occur i n a single-family suburb. (IV) Condominium apartment projects, with t h e i r inward-looking unit layouts, provide the nucleus of an e f f e c t i v e micro-community by reason of t h e i r i n t e r -l i n k i n g communal spaces and f a c i l i t i e s . Suburban housing t r a c t s , with street-oriented s i t i n g arrange-ments, are l e s s - q u a l i f i e d for offering the basis for a sense of community. (for an elaboration of these points, see urban Development Ins t i t u t e , 1969, pages 11, 12, 13). While each of these assertions i s most i n t e r e s t i n g and offers stimulation to pursue even a wide range of questions concerning l i f e s t y l e and dwelling type relationships, t h e i r v a l i d i t y can only be established through empirical research. Concerning the p o t e n t i a l of this housing form, the authors stated: \"As education and s k i l l l evels develop together with increased l e i s u r e time, and as the cost of serviced land r i s e s sharply, there w i l l tend to be greater r a t i o n a l i s a t i o n of housing choices. In this climate, the condominium with i t s promise of 'more free time' w i l l considerably widen the range of a l t e r n a t i v e s \" . (Urban De-velopment In s t i t u t e , 1969, p. 20) - 53 -While i t i s unfortunate that no evidence was offered to substantiate these claims, i t must be agreed that i f the housing development and marketing industry recognizes the importance of providing dwellings geared to d i f f e r i n g consumer behaviors, then an attempt to i d e n t i f y l i f e s t y l e -dwelling type relationships i s v a l i d . D. 1970 CANADIAN NATIONAL SURVEY This survey, c a r r i e d out by a private firm f o r the Ministry of State f o r Urban A f f a i r s , constituted the f i r s t major Canadian research project i n t o the \"condominium subject\". Its purpose was to discover WHO the purchasers were, WHY they bought, and WHAT thei r condominium l i v i n g experience had been to date. Using both the mailed questionnaire and personal interview technique, data was used from 1,114 q u a l i f i a b l e returns out of a sample of 3,133 respondents. It was s t a t i s t i c a l l y established that the sample was large enough to be representative of the Canadian condominium popu-l a t i o n , and tests showed that no regional or project biases existed. From biographic data collected, the authors learned 'WHO' the t y p i c a l purchaser was, both i n condominium town-houses as well as apartments. As a group the households were quite homogeneous i n socio-economic c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . House-hold heads were i n their early t h i r t i e s , about 40% had some university education, which was r e f l e c t e d in the large per-54 -centage holding professional, managerial or technical jobs (44%). Females also were more highly educated than the average Canadian, which also was r e f l e c t e d i n the f i n d i n g that 50.7% worked f u l l or part time i n professional and other highly s k i l l e d occupations. Average family incomes were consequently high ($11,809.) and, since th e i r f a m i l i e s were small (1.2 per household) and young (6.8 years old), they presumably had more to spend on non-basics such as the 'mobile goods' referred to i n the U.D.I, report. Condominium apartment owners d i f f e r e d mostly from the norm. Many were single with no children, older, had a longer previous place of residence (5.1 years compared with 3.4 years) and purchased smaller units. Even though these few differences were found, the owners viewed condominium l i v i n g i n a r e l a t i v e l y uniform manner. The authors state: \"Correlations show an o v e r a l l lack of any strong, systematic influence of a socio-economic nature upon condominium owners' evaluations of th e i r housing.\" (Condominium Research Associates, 1970, p. 31) Not only d i d the sample regard the features of t h e i r units and merits of th e i r neighborhoods i n a uniform manner, but they also chose t h e i r units largely f o r the same reasons. \"Easy Maintenance\" was c i t e d by 29.5% as a c r i t i c a l factor, which was p a r t i c u l a r l y relevant to the older age group. The - 55 -remainder bought for economic reasons (e.g. lower t o t a l p r i c e , lower downpayments, e t c . ) . In spite of the homogeneity observed on most variables, the authors stated that inasmuch as three group-ings appeared when asked about ' s o c i a b i l i t y ' (measured by frequency of v i s i t s with neighbors), three ' l i f e s t y l e s ' were represented. They claimed that: \"The f a c t that each of these three groups of people i s represented i n large numbers among the re-spondents indicates that several a l t e r n a t i v e l i f e s t y l e s and patterns of neighborhood r e l a t i o n s are a v a i l a b l e within condominium projects.\" (Condominium Research Associates, 1970, p. 56) This writer does not consider 'frequency of v i s i t i n g ' to be an adequate indicator of l i f e s t y l e , but probably i s an important component of the concept i n the context of r e s i -d e n tial settings. An important f i n d i n g was that,70% of the sample (both those i n townhouses and apartments) regard a si n g l e -family house as th e i r ultimate choice. Presumably, condo-minium tenure i s a 'transitory s i t u a t i o n ' - the best s u b s t i -tute before acquiring 'the r e a l thing'. I t i s important to remember, however, that when the study was ca r r i e d out, owners were s t i l l new to this experience and were the 'Canadian pioneers' i n i t . Even considering this caution, i t appears safe to conclude from the study that Canadian homeowners very much desire to have t h e i r own house on i t s own property. - 56 -They are not yet prepared to t o t a l l y welcome the 'communal approach' to home ownership, preferring perhaps to r e t a i n something of the t r a d i t i o n a l independent l i f e s t y l e which i s rapidly vanishing. E. 1971 GREATER VANCOUVER SURVEY This was the f i r s t comprehensive review of the condominium market s i t u a t i o n i n the Vancouver area. I t was car r i e d out under the auspices of the B. C. Real Estate Council, with data sources being CMHC s t a t i s t i c s and i n t e r -views conducted i n the f i e l d . Facts gathered r e l a t e to financing, marketing, managing and consumer c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . The most c r i t i c a l f i n ding i n this writer's opinion was that i n 1971 the l o c a l housing industry had not s p e c i f i -c a l l y oriented this product toward any p a r t i c u l a r market segment, projects were almost exclusively suburban orientated, which provided no clear locational advantage r e l a t i v e to owning a conventional house. The authors point out that the 20% or less p r i c e d i f f e r e n t i a l did not provide adequate com-pensation whether i n terms of unit space and amenities, privacy, or access to major commercial or r e t a i l centres and transportation. At that time, condominium development was d i r e c t l y associated with low-income housing i n the eyes of the general pu b l i c . This was not without some j u s t i f i c a t i o n , as the authors stated: - 57 -\"The d i s t r i b u t i o n by p r i c e range substantiates the popular opinion that condominiums are being c i t e d as a solution to the moderate income housing problem. At the time when the bulk of condominiums are appearing i n the $20 - 24,000. bracket, new single-family homes are being constructed i n the $26 -32,000. range.\" (Hamilton, 1971, p. 16) Socio-economic and biographic data c o l l e c t e d during the Canada-wide survey which was conducted the previous summer are r e f l e c t e d i n the information gathered by these authors. T y p i c a l l y , the home buyers were young couples below 34 years of age who formerly were renters. For most thi s was t h e i r f i r s t purchase, but by no means were they the 'modest' or 'low income' sector as suspected. I t was found that 68% had family incomes exceeding $10,000. per year, and only 3% earned less than $7,000. per year. This was understandable upon learning that 48% of a l l wives worked (52% of a l l households had no children), and a large percentage held professional (25%) and managerial jobs (16%). Upon f i n e r analysis, three consumer groups were i d e n t i f i e d : 1. young professional/managerial couples (68%) having good incomes with high salary increase p o t e n t i a l , * over-consuming space' now i n a n t i c i p a t i o n of the i r family growing. 2. 35-49 year-old couples (22% of sample) with the largest incomes, f a m i l i e s , and involved i n 'high mobility' - 58 -occupations of management and sales. 3. 50 year-old-and-over owners (10% of sample), most of whom were i n the low-wage bracket, had never owned before and had few or no children at home. Unfortunately, reasons for choosing this dwelling-type were apparently not probed. One i s l e f t to deduce from the above categories that except for the middle or near-middle income group, economic considerations were uppermost i n s p i t e of high average incomes. It i s s i g n i f i c a n t to note that the authors point out that, \" I f the projects were to o f f e r more amenities more young buyers might be attracted. The product could be marketed as a new l i f e s t y l e package with the emphasis on freedom and leisure-time u t i l i z a t i o n . This would include day-care centres; maid and laundry services, indoor and outdoor adult's and children's recreation f a c i l i t i e s with f u l l - t i m e admini-s t r a t i o n . \" (Hamilton, 1971, p. 34) Therefore i t may be concluded that t h i s new dwelling a l t e r n a t i v e could p o t e n t i a l l y o f f e r the opportunity f o r pursuing a l i f e s t y l e less attached to 'home and hearth*. As experience with this dwelling type and ownership form i n -creases, the author implies that a d i s t i n c t 'condominium l i f e s t y l e ' should emerge. F. 1972 GREATER VANCOUVER BUYER SATISFACTION STUDY Undertaken as a planning research project, this study was designed to assess the s a t i s f a c t i o n of condominium - 59 -unit owners. Based on a questionnaire and interview survey, and drawing from a growing amount of material on the condo-minium concept, the study reaches several conclusions about owner s a t i s f a c t i o n but only b r i e f l y touches on the matter of l i f e s t y l e . Of the three hypotheses to be tested, the one most relevant to t h i s research sought to establish a l i n k between housing expectation and actual experience. I f the experience of residents i n their condominium was s a t i s f a c t o r y , i t should follow that the developer succeeded i n designing according to market tastes and not just for speculative sales. Like Hamilton, Ito recognized that clear market i d e n t i f i c a t i o n was generally absent. However, he did f i n d developers who had begun to r e a l i z e the importance of catering to s p e c i f i c tastes, and perhaps unwittingly, l i f e -s t y l e s . Typical responses from these p a r t i c u l a r builders were: \" . . . i f you are building f o r young families you can't use the same thing that you would for r e t i r e d s . . . \" \"...the emerging trend i s one of d i r e c t i n g a s p e c i f i c condominium project to a s p e c i f i c group of people based on stage i n l i f e c y c l e or income l e v e l . . . \" (Ito, 1972, p. 16) The word 'emerging' i s most appropriate since de-velopers are only i n the early stages of acquiring an under-standing of which components are c r i t i c a l f o r reaching a - 60 -s p e c i f i c market, and acting on this knowledge. The view of Michelson (1970) i s that residents with 'cosmopolitan' l i f e -s t y l e s (non-child centred households) and the aged have s p e c i f i c preferences which d i f f e r from other s o c i a l sub-classes, and which should be accommodated i f these sub-classes are to be s a t i s f i e d with their r e s i d e n t i a l environ-ments. Ito's research discovered that, o v e r a l l , the owners tend, to find, condominium l i v i n g better than expected. That s a t i s f a c t i o n , however, was c l e a r l y related to socio-economic variables. He observed that s a t i s f a c t i o n was more assured for households with: (a) highest average incomes, (b) the above average p r i c e d unit, (c) maximum of 3 persons, (d) the head being less than 40 years old, (e) the head having post-secondary education, and, (f) the head having a professional or managerial job. This f i n d i n g should almost be expected, since the group possesses the various resources enabling them to reach 'sound conclusions based on sound analysis', and the f i n a n c i a l wherewithal to act accordingly. Their choice of a condominium unit may therefore be a conscious decision to s e l e c t the correct setting f o r a p a r t i c u l a r and unique way of l i v i n g . C o l l e c t i n g evidence to support that hypothesis was not an - 61 -objective of Ito's study, but i s central to this research project. G. 1972 GREATER VANCOUVER MEDIUM DENSITY HOUSING STUDY Another study c a r r i e d out at about the same time as Ito's research was that of the United Way of Greater Vancouver. The researcher's purpose was to explore variations i n consumer s a t i s f a c t i o n with housing. Its objective was s i m i l a r to Ito's study, but the approach d i f f e r e d . As a r e s u l t of increasing numbers and d i v e r s i t y i n medium and high density family housing i n the Greater Vancouver Region (G.V.R.D.), and considering that very l i t t l e research existed at the time on user's perceptions of needs as well as l i k e s and d i s l i k e s , the authors developed a unique research t o o l . Using a s t r a t i f i e d random sample of 755 respondents from a wide cross-section of households and 19 projects throughout the G.V.R.D., they administered a questionnaire survey including the 'Housing Game'. Readers may consult the study for more d e t a i l s , but e s s e n t i a l l y the object of the 'Game' was f o r respondents to indicate t h e i r desired housing s i t u a t i o n by a l l o t t i n g a l i m i t e d amount of money to various r e s i d e n t i a l components (e.g. structure, location, common f a c i l i t i e s , room sizes, e t c . ) . P a r t i c u l a r attitudes and preferences of households were regarded as being the r e s u l t of l i f e s t y l e choices. With respect to 'location', the authors state, - 62 -•'Location preference seems to be a function of l i f e s t y l e whether a person f e e l s s o c i a l l y comfortable with his neighbors and whether the housing stock approximates that which his value system deems acceptable may be more im-portant than a v a i l a b i l i t y of shopping or transportation or proximity to work\". ( B e l l and Constantinescu, 1974, p. 15). Further, they suggested that the maintenance of a desired l i f e s t y l e i s important even when location trade-offs are necessary. \"In the housing game, 90% of suburban residents i d e a l l y prefer to l i v e i n the suburbs. Many Vancouver residents, when unable to purchase the i r i d e a l suburban sing l e family dwelling unit, choose a more expensive urban location with a moderately priced townhouse or apart-ment ( u n i t ) . This suggests that l i f e s t y l e s may be the underlying factor influencing consumer choice of l o c a t i o n . \" ( B e l l and Constantinescu, 1974, p. 16). Concerning s a t i s f a c t i o n or d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n with their dwellings, i t i s clear that multiple dwelling units of any type are simply not capable of catering to the needs or l i f e s t y l e s of each group. Although most were moderately s a t i s f i e d regardless of their stage i n the family l i f e cycle, most s e t t l e d f o r ownership of a townhouse i n the game. This p a r t i c u l a r l y applied to families with young children. Males were found to be s i g n i f i c a n t l y more d i s s a t i s -f i e d than females with th e i r dwelling and project. The authors suggested: - 63 -\" I t may be that the design of multiple dwelling complexes currently f r u s t r a t e s the expression of t r a d i t i o n a l male roles such as mending a fence or f i x i n g a car.\" ( B e l l and Constantinescu, 1974, p. 7) It was revealed i n the game that 71% of a l l re-spondents i d e a l l y chose a single family house. Whether t h i s predominantly r e f l e c t s the male's desire to act out his • t r a d i t i o n a l r o l e ' , which may be a 'hangover' from our North American r u r a l past when 'maleness' was par t l y measured by one's handyman a b i l i t i e s , can only be properly discovered through some psychological testing methods. The p r i c e of such a dwelling i s now out of reach of most homebuyers, and has consequently taken on 'status value' as the authors discovered. For the majority (69%) the townhouse i s the best and most desired substitute. While l i f e s t y l e was regarded as an i n f l u e n t i a l independent variable i n making c e r t a i n decisions regarding dwelling types and locations, no attempt was made to define i t such that i t could be used for empirical research. This i s the singlemost important task f o r advancing i t to an •operational' l e v e l . Hopefully the study at hand w i l l contribute i n that d i r e c t i o n . H. 1973 GREATER VANCOUVER SURVEY The most recent comprehensive review of condominium l i v i n g i n the Vancouver Region was c a r r i e d out by Hamilton (1973) on behalf of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver - 64 -as an 'up-date' of his e a r l i e r 1971 survey. Aside from learning of buyers' l i k e s and d i s l i k e s , the authors probed reasons f o r purchasing a condominium townhouse or apartment over a single-family house. This was not covered i n 1971. Data from a t o t a l sample of 513 households (repre-sented about 10% of the universe) were obtained by the ques-tionnaire technique. D i s t r i b u t i o n was made to approximately 17% of a l l residents i n developments of ten units or more. Concerning the r e l i a b i l i t y of findings, Hamilton stated that the average age of household heads surveyed was 36.55 years as compared with 36.23 years from CMHC records f o r a l l NHA -financed projects, and, \"Thus, i t can be concluded that the r e s u l t s of the survey are s i g n i f i c a n t . \" (Hamilton e t . a l . , 1973, p. 26) whether the s i g n i f i c a n c e of the results i s d i r e c t l y a factor of age i s questionable, but i n any event the findings from the survey and comparison of these to the 1971 survey reveal both i n t e r e s t i n g and c r i t i c a l l y important information. I t must be remembered that during 1972 housing prices began to escalate at a rate which did not apply from 1968 to 1971. By the time of Hamilton's survey, d r a s t i c p r i c e i n f l a t i o n had set i n and unit prices were quickly out-pacing the average homebuyer's a b i l i t y to keep up. - 65 This occurrence was most noticeable i n the age p r o f i l e . In 1973, 59.5% were under age 35, 26.8% were i n the 35-49 bracket, and 13.6% were over 49 years old. In 1971, the percentages were 67.5%, 23.2% and 9.4% respectively. The s h i f t to somewhat older buyers points to a marked housing cost increase. Younger buyers were now having d i f f i c u l t y i n r a i s i n g an adequate downpayment (1973: townhouse average downpayment - 12.3%, 1971: 5-7%). Family sizes were only s l i g h t l y larger due to the age difference i n buyers, and developers s t i l l predominantly sought out the moderate-income, f i r s t - t i m e buyer. That income had now moved almost $2,000. to the $12,000. bracket'. I n f l a t i o n since 1971 had already begun to e f f e c t i v e l y take dwelling type and location choice out of the p i c t u r e for most buyers. It was found that most respondents had s t i l l been renters previously, but t h i s also dropped d r a s t i c a l l y (1973: 67.4%, 1971: 86.3%). Housing purchases now required substantial cash equity. Young homemakers were forced to buy the cheaper condominium option the standard apartment unit. Townhouse prices had reached and passed 1971 suburban single-family house p r i c e l e v e l s ! A l l studies reviewed to this point have consistently shown that the majority of buyers want to acquire a si n g l e -family unit and have the unique independence which i s not obtained i n any type of condominium development. Hamilton - 66 -referred to t h i s as 'the common b e l i e f . But condominium buyers, being of less a f f l u e n t means cannot a f f o r d t h i s choice, and buy a multi-dwelling unit i n hopes of building up the necessary equity to l a t e r buy a house. He argued that, •'If i t can be assumed that the majority of purchasers whose f i r s t choice was a house would look at houses before buying their condominiums, then this common theory i s refuted.... Only about 44 per cent of con-dominium purchasers looked f o r a single-family house before buying their condominium, which leaves 56 per cent who appeared to be disinterested i n owning a house.\" (Hamilton, e t . a l . , 1973, p. 37) It may be that this was true f o r apartment purchasers (averaging 49 years of age), the majority of whom were former homeowners. Hamilton's claim that they \"were apparently interested i n changing their l i f e s t y l e \" i s acceptable, i n that the children of this group are now leaving home, and less space means less maintenance and more free time f o r long-awaited l e i s u r e l y pursuits. To claim d i s i n t e r e s t i n owning a house f o r condo-minium buyers generally, however, seems untenable. The high downpayments and mortgage payments simply made houses non-choices f o r this group. Serious house-shopping was l i t e r a l l y 'an exercise i n f u t i l i t y ' . This was supported by Hamilton's own f i n d i n g when buyers were asked why they chose a condominium unit over a single-family unit. Categorized by reason, with percentages showing frequency, they were: 1. No maintenance 25.9% 2. Value (meaning lower f u l l p rice) 23.8% - 67 -3. Lower downpayment 16.4% 4. Location 13.2% 5. Lower monthly payments 11.0% 6. Recreation f a c i l i t i e s (amenities) 9.7% Inasmuch as reasons 1, 3 and 5 are a l l economic considerations, he regrouped the l i s t i n order of s i g n i f i -cance, being: 1. Price 2. Freedom from maintenance 3. Location 4. Recreation f a c i l i t i e s as the basic c r i t e r i o n to condominium sales success, i t has taken on special s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r even the ' s o l i d ' middle income group since l a t e 1972. While previous studies found that 65-70% of a l l condominium townhouse purchasers intended to move on to a single-family house, this survey revealed that only 42 per cent bought with t h i s intention (Hamilton e t . a l . , 1973, p. 40). Against this r e f l e c t s t h e i r awareness of the high cost of such a unit. Unless they are able to acquire additional cash, t h e i r unit appreciation w i l l only be offset by that of houses and the 'single-family home dream* may conceivably never be f u l f i l l e d i n a sim i l a r location. (Hamilton e t . a l •» 1973, p. 38) Although the p r i c e advantage was regarded o r i g i n a l l y - 68 -Hamilton's 1973 findings r e f l e c t a 'mood of pessimism' concerning a households' c a p a b i l i t y of including the conventional house i n the i r choice from housing alterna-tives i n a given location. From the writer's experience i n the r e s i d e n t i a l development industry i n 1973, this mood was apparent during discussions with prospective home buyers, as well as among various builders, and became increasingly obvious as the year progressed. The same lack of opportunity was less evident during data c o l l e c t i o n f or the research at hand. I t must be recog-nized from Hamilton's findings that the matching of housing preferences with actual choices i s d i r e c t l y t i e d to p r e v a i l i n g economic conditions. Correspondingly, the importance of l i f e s t y l e s a t i s f a c t i o n i n the r e s i d e n t i a l s election process may be pertinent to a more r e s t r i c t e d range of households than i s hypothesized i n this research. I. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS Any conclusions concerning these studies must be mftde against a backdrop of the r e a l i t y that the appearance of condominium ownership was a d i r e c t r e s u l t of rapidly escalating r e s i d e n t i a l land costs i n Canada's major urban centres. whatever else i t s success was at t r i b u t a b l e to at the outset, the p r i n c i p l e reason was the desire f o r ownership. In a very r e a l sense, this i s a c r i t i c a l element i n the cu l t u r a l value system of most North American households. For - 69 -any household with low incomes or meager savings, t h i s housing a l t e r n a t i v e allowed ownership. For households wishing to reduce space requirements aft e r children had l e f t home, 'condominium' meant an opportunity to pursue a more l e i s u r e l y l i f e s t y l e or a c t i v i t y pattern, and enjoy ownership simultaneously. With the majority of prospective homebuyers being i n the f i r s t group, i t i s no surprise that most re-searchers reported 'economic factors' as being basic to the purchase decision. ' L i f e s t y l e s a t i s f a c t i o n ' i s recognized by researchers as being an important concern i n the dwelling s e l e c t i o n process, but inasmuch as systematic study of the term • l i f e s t y l e ' i t s e l f has only recently been related to urban environments, reference to i t has been in very general terms (e.g. \"more fre e time\", \"increased community involvement\", \"career and physical mobility\", \" s o c i a b i l i t y \" , \"prestigous neighborhood status\", e t c . ) . The urban Development I n s t i t u t e survey (1969), simultaneously recognizing that the condominium dwelling expands the range of alternatives for r a t i o n a l housing choice, and then, l i s t i n g types of new l i f e s t y l e opportunities that are possible under th i s form of ownership, indicates that the concept merits more formalized attention. From the market researchers' studies i t was learned that a lack of clear market i d e n t i f i c a t i o n contributed to slow sales i n the - 70 -e a r l i e r projects. Indeed, this problem i s present even i n the current market. This lack of i d e n t i f i c a t i o n r e f l e c t s a lack on the developers' part of knowing the s t y l e or pattern of l i v i n g of his intended buyer. Consequently, d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n with his product r e s u l t s , which i n the more extreme cases produces tension and an un-co-operative s p i r i t i n the mini-community. In the f i n a l analysis, concern about the ' l i f e s t y l e -dwelling choice' r e l a t i o n s h i p has r e a l s i g n i f i c a n c e only when several options are open to the buyer wishing to make a 'rat i o n a l choice'. T y p i c a l l y , such options were shown to be open only to households of the highest income and education categories, and then usually only for those i n the 'empty-nest' stage of the family l i f e cycle. The Bell-Constantinescu (1974) study showed how c r i t i c a l the 'user-activity-density-design' r e l a t i o n s h i p i s i n f o s t e r i n g s o c i a l l y healthy r e s i d e n t i a l environments. I t follows then that the l i f e s t y l e concept must be properly defined, adapted to research i n order to determine how i t i s related to s p e c i f i c dwelling types and households, and then p h y s i c a l l y translated i n t o corresponding r e s i d e n t i a l settings. It i s to this task that the study now turns. - 71 -\"No geography can properly be regarded as •so c i a l * unless i t draws i t s material from the active study of men and women i n their work and homes.\" T. W. Freeman 1967 - 72 -CHAPTER FOUR METHOD OF RESEARCH introductory remarks The objective of this chapter i s to give a detailed account of the manner i n which the entire research was carried out, beginning with a statement of the hypothesis to test and ending with the data c o l l e c t i o n procedures. Sections concerned with the se l e c t i o n of study units and the selection of a research technique are of necessity treated i n some depth. The former section looks at a r e l a t i v e l y new concept i n housing as one of two household settings considered, and i t s uniqueness deserves more than b r i e f comment. The l a t t e r section discusses the use of a seldom adopted device f o r data c o l l e c t i o n , and therefore requires s p e c i a l attention. A. STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS The hypothesis to be tested here states that, \"Households purchasing dwelling units of d i f f e r e n t s t r u c t u r a l types and ownership arrangements, but simi l a r age, p r i c e and location, exhibit d i f f e r -ent l i f e s t y l e s . A c t i v i t i e s engaged i n during discretionary time by single-family dwelling households w i l l be dwelling unit-oriented, and non-dwelling unit-oriented for households i n condominium households a\" Various of the terms here require c l a r i f i c a t i o n , which follows. 73 -B. DEFINITION OF TERMS 1. household For purposes of this study, this refers to a husband and wife unit, with or without children. Single person households often r e s u l t from the death of one partner, divorce or separation. The choice of remaining i n a house or townhouse i s thus l i k e l y to be involuntary rather than voluntary. In the i n t e r e s t of keeping the sample as uniform as possible i n terms of i t s composition, single person households were excluded. 2. s t r u c t u r a l types Households i n the following dwelling-unit types only are to be compared: (a) s i n g l e -family detached houses (hereafter referred to as SF units) and (b) townhouse units (hereafter referred to as TH u n i t s ) . 3. ownership arrangements Rental SF and TH units do exist, but for the purposes of t h i s study only the ownership form of tenure i s considered. The form of ownership varies and i s of c r i t i c a l importance to this study. SF units are owned i n fee simple, i n that the purchaser owns both his dwelling and the property surrounding i t i n i t s e n t i r e t y . The TH units studied here are owned i n condominium. The purchaser owns the i n t e r i o r space of his unit i n i t s entirety, but shares the exterior ownership plus a l l the adjacent property i n the development with a l l the other homeowners. 4* l i f e s t y l e In simplest terms, l i f e s t y l e here refers to the manner i n which an i n d i v i d u a l or household c a r r i e s out - 74 -i t s day-to-day l i v i n g . P a r t i c u l a r l y , a c t i v i t i e s engaged i n during non-work hours (discretionary time) are examined. Obviously, such factors as b e l i e f s , attitudes and values are involved. It i s contended that overt behavior i s a reasonable expression of these. L i f e s t y l e thus defined i s suggested as having one of two s p e c i f i c orientations: (1) dwelling u n i t : discretionary a c t i v i t i e s are primarily centered on or related to the dwelling unit and, (2) non-dwelling u n i t : discretionary a c t i v i t i e s are not focused on the dwelling unit and more frequently occur elsewhere than at home. Measurement indices for each orientation w i l l be the amounts of time spent i n a c t i v i t i e s of each type. C. SELECTING STUDY UNITS The two dwelling types to be selected f o r compara-ti v e analysis here, as has been noted, are SF and condominium TH units. The accompanying photos show representatives of the sample drawn for each type. single-family dwelling: »r mil 1972 condominium townhouse dwelling 1972 - 76 -Since the t r a d i t i o n a l s i n g l e family dwelling i s undoubtedly f a m i l i a r to the reader, emphasis here w i l l be on the newly introduced a l t e r n a t i v e . As recently as 1966, the condominium TH concept was accepted by the government of B r i t i s h Columbia. (\"The Strata T i t l e s Act, being Chapter 46 of the Statutes of B r i t i s h Columbia, 1966, came into e f f e c t on September 1st., 1966, and was amended by Chapter 42 of the Statutes of B r i t i s h Columbia, 1968.\") (Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation, 1969, p. 10) Primarily, this concept was regarded as an alterna-t i v e to ownership of the t r a d i t i o n a l SF dwelling. Its appearance was largely a r e f l e c t i o n of increasing housing costs, which r e f l e c t e d r i s i n g land costs, within metropolitan areas across Canada as well as the United States. Through i t s inherent c a p a b i l i t y of economizing on land use, the p r i c e per dwelling was to be reduced to a l e v e l within the reach of a growing percentage of the population which valued p r i v a t e ownership but could not aff o r d the SF unit. Once introduced ( r e f e r r i n g here to the Canadian si t u a t i o n only), and following a b r i e f period of hesitancy on the part of the public to accept i t , i t became evident that i t s p o t e n t i a l was not only among those who found i t d i f f i c u l t to buy housing, but also among those who sought to pursue a carefree or l e i s u r e l y pattern of l i v i n g . - 77 -The c r i t i c a l factor to note i s that while TH households are free to re-arrange t h e i r environment within the unit (providing i t does not i n t e r f e r e with attached neighboring units or the st r u c t u r a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s ) , there are clear-cut r e s t r i c t i o n s regarding both the use and manipulation of exterior space. Contrastingly, owners of SF units are f r e e to arrange and use t h e i r i n t e r i o r and exterior spaces i n a comparatively unrestricted fashion. This difference was believed to have s p e c i f i c implications f o r the type of a c t i v i t i e s a household would be involved i n both insid e and outside t h e i r dwelling. Con-sequently, i t was surmised, this would serve to p a r t i a l l y sort out households placing varying degrees of importance on the a b i l i t y of their dwelling unit to accommodate certa i n l i f e s t y l e s . While the 'image makers* and the r e a l estate de-velopers may not be e n t i r e l y certain of how the consumers of each dwelling type d i f f e r , there i s a noticeable attempt to appeal to the d i f f e r e n t i n t e r e s t s i n the case of each type. Often the economic advantage of buying rather than renting i s pointed out, and i s expressed as \"building up equity.\" This appeal i s directed towards readers of TH as well as SF dwelling advertisements, p a r t i c u l a r l y when the units offered are i n the lower p r i c e range ($20,000 to $25,000 1972 p r i c e s ) . As both types of unit move up the p r i c e - 78 -s c a l e (e.g. $30,000 to $35,000), the appeal i s more to 'luxury l i v i n g * . The conscious e f f o r t t o a t t r a c t house-holds p e r c e i v e d to be i n t e r e s t e d i n d i f f e r e n t l i f e s t y l e s i s evidenced by the accompanying ad-vertisements . Source: Vancouver Sun, October 5, 1972 And now . . . Mira Place A qreen, qrowinq ploce to call home. With 3-bedroom townhomes Beautifully built and finished Ready to move into . . . now. Close to schools, shopping and all the outdoor pleasures that make life worthwhile. Rus grounds you don't have to core for . . . winter or summer. Freedom to enjoy life as you wont to live it in beautiful B.C. Your home on Mira Place is waiting for you now. At Simon Fraser Hills. See i t . . . . today! Vic the Lougheed to Bell Ave. or Production Way V i a Hv M Z s O H < J M z U M H M < D •J (X) ( i . 2 O 1 a i z 100-504 Figure 2 COMPARISON OF TIME SPENT IN NON-DWELLING UNIT-ORIENTED ACTIVITIES 40% townhouse single-ffcmily HOUSEHOLD TYPES b. discussion of households by a c t i v i t y orientations and dwelling type ( i ) townhouse sample This group i s d e f i n i t e l y not homogeneous with respect for i t s a c t i v i t y orientation. Early indications of this were obtained by c a l c u l a t i n g standard deviations from the mean f o r each group, which are: TH - 26; SF - 22.3. The greater the standard deviation the greater the hetero-geneity among members i n a given set. S t r i k i n g evidence of this i s revealed i n Figure 3. The graph indicates that conclusions made about the re l a t i o n s h i p between the t o t a l SF and TH samples must eventually r e l a t e back to each component group. We can see that the net difference between the two groups' a c t i v i t y orientations i s e n t i r e l y a t t r i b u t a b l e to the difference - 120 -Figure 3 z < M w 2 Q i COMPARISONS OF TIME SPENT IN NON-DWELLING UNIT-QRIBNTBP ACTIVITY BY DWELLING TYPE AND LOCATION lOO-i 50H 23,53^ 21.5% RILA PCMB RILA PCMB TOWNHOUSE SINGLE-FAMILY HOUSEHOLD DWELLING TYPES AND LOCATION between the Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Bumaby TH households and a l l other households. Differences observed must be related to factors other than simply 'dwelling type'. Observation of both Richmond-Ladner and Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s (presented i n Appendix D) shows most d i f f e r -ences r e l a t e to education, income and family ages and size s . However, differences on these variables cannot be regarded as s u f f i c i e n t l y large so as to produce the observed v a r i a t i o n i n a c t i v i t y patterns. In f a c t , since the Richmond-Ladner group has a larger household income and higher education l e v e l , i t was f u l l y anticipated that they would show greater i n -volvement i n a c t i v i t i e s removed both from their dwellings and - 121 -immediate neighborhood. Moreover, they have fewer children which should allow them even more opportunity to have a highly varied and dispersed a c t i v i t y pattern, ( i i ) single-family sample A c t i v i t y orientations f o r this group are as ex-pected — - c l e a r l y centered on their homes. It must be borne i n mind, however, that the only data used here i s f o r the work day and Sunday previous to the time of the interview. On such days, i t was argued, the normal day-to-day a c t i v i t i e s could best be observed. Furthermore, the t o t a l discretionary time would probably not be great f o r any household, and p a r t i c u l a r l y not f o r SF households which have additional chores to perform related to the maintenance of their pro-perty. Presumably the time remaining would often not be s u f f i c i e n t to merit spending i t i n places other than at home or very near to their residence. Conversely, a larger number of usable l e i s u r e hours would be a v a i l a b l e to the TH group, which would make i t more p r a c t i c a l to spend them i n a c t i v i t i e s which took them away from th e i r neighborhood. Therefore, the percentages recorded for the SF sample are l i k e l y somewhat biased from the outset i n the d i r e c t i o n of the hypothesized re l a t i o n s h i p . 3. Summary and Conclusions Upon commencing this study, i t was recognized that i n order to make meaningful comparisons between households, - 122 -information other than that concerning dwelling-type and location would be needed* To that end, a variety of personal c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s was obtained from each i n d i v i d u a l . The areas of greatest d i s s i m i l a r i t y were education and income, and to a lesser extent, family structure and previous housing experience. These differences were used to help account f o r variations observed i n household a c t i v i t i e s . In terms of location s i m i l a r i t i e s and differences, the Richmond-Ladner TH sample has a close resemblance to the Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby SF group where biographic data are concerned. The opposite applies to the Richmond-Ladner SF and Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby TH group, especially with respect f o r education and income l e v e l s . These differences within the two dwelling-type groups were not shown to be of such proportions that they would a f f e c t the hypothesized a c t i v i t y orientations. It i s consequently a considerable surprise to discover that a l l a c t i v i t y patterns are e s s e n t i a l l y the same except f o r the Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby TH group. In addition to t h i s , the percentage of time spent i n a c t i v i t y away from heme by the Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby sample i s so great that i t leads to concern over the representativeness of these households. Either i t i s an anomaly or i n f a c t does typify s i m i l a r l y - s i t u a t e d households. Only a more extensive survey could c l a r i f y t h i s . - 123 -Since clear-cut a c t i v i t y - o r i e n t a t i o n differences are not indicated f o r the two groups, i t must be concluded that... there i s i n s u f f i c i e n t evidence to support the thesis which claims an i d e n t i f i a b l e r e l a t i o n s h i p exists between a household's l i f e s t y l e and i t s dwelling-type choice. - 124 -CHAPTER SIX CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS introductory remarks This chapter discusses the problems which follow from the use of certain concepts and the research design. Conclusions made are about the project i n general, since conclusions about s p e c i f i c findings are presented i n the previous chapter. Recommendations are offerred as guidelines to indicate how the major problems may be approached i n subsequent related studies. A. PROBLEM AREAS: A LOOK BACK AND LOOKING AHEAD 1. Timing of Research a. u n f a m i l i a r i t y with condominium concept and recency of purchase The basic premise of the thesis was that house-holds chose their dwelling because of and not i n s p i t e of the opportunities each dwelling type offerred. Correspond-ingly, each group was presumed to represent a d i f f e r e n t market sector. The data i n Table x however, show that 48% of the townhouse respondents had considered a single-family dwelling, while only 6% of the single-family group had looked at town-house units p r i o r to t h e i r f i n a l choice. Even more revealing i s the f a c t that when questioned about t h e i r next purchase, every household indicated a single-family dwelling preference. - 125 -One must therefore conclude from the data that the townhouse sample was not drawn from a d i s t i n c t market sector, and by inference, l i f e s t y l e group. This said, i t must be pointed out that deductions or conclusions made from the findings must at a l l times be related to the timing of the research. It must be borne i n mind that the comparison was between households i n the very f a m i l i a r single-family dwelling (almost every c h i l d was experienced with t h i s s t y l e of l i v i n g from childhood), and those i n the unfamiliar townhouse unit l i v i n g within the even more unfamiliar context of condominium ownership. It may be possible that by simply demonstrating greater willingness to be f l e x i b l e and experiment with th e i r f i r s t a c q u i s i t i o n (which might i n d i c a t e a d i f f e r e n t emotional attachment to the t r a d i t i o n a l 'house and home'), the TH group does represent a d i f f e r e n t l i f e s t y l e group but has not experienced this new form of ownership s u f f i c i e n t l y long to exhibit a d e f i n i t e non-dwelling a c t i v i t y orientation. probably the only accurate means of testing t h i s would be to repeat the same type of research at one year i n t e r v a l s . If i t could be found over perhaps a f i v e year period that those households which remained in their TH dwellings d i d adapt to t h e i r new environment and showed a non-dwelling a c t i v i t y pattern, then one would have evidence that r e s i d e n t i a l areas can be d i f f e r e n t i a t e d i n terms of l i f e -s t y l e s . - 126 The advantages of repeating a study of this type at reasonable i n t e r v a l s are apparent i n the condominium studies of the Greater Vancouver Area by Hamilton e t . a l . (1971 and 1973). Both as a r e s u l t of r e f i n i n g t h e i r metho-dology and benefiting from increasing condominium development which i s being accepted and better understood by the purchaser, they were able to show that dwelling type and l i f e s t y l e congruency i s being attained f o r some. Their 1973 study (p. 37) indicated that 67% of 152 respondents deliberately chose this form of ownership because of i t s inherent advantages. One d i f f i c u l t y i n interpreting such findings, the researchers confess, i s that among the deliberate choosers, there was no i n d i c a t i o n of how many did not even consider buying a single-family unit simply because they knew beforehand that at the time they could not a f f o r d to do so. A recent survey of condominium units on the North Shore c a r r i e d out by the writer for development and marketing purposes revealed an i n t e r e s t i n g finding regarding this matter. It was discovered from conversations with other developers, management companies and owners themselves that the 'dwelling-type - l i f e s t y l e r elationship' i s r e a l l y only apparent i n the more expensive developments. b. e f f e c t of i n f l a t i o n a r y trend i n real estate values At the time the survey f o r this study was c a r r i e d - 127 -out the i n f l a t i o n a r y trend i n r e a l estate prices was just beginning i t s rapid ascent to the present l e v e l . However, as i s shown in data gathered here, i n mid-1972 p o t e n t i a l buyers could s t i l l choose between a single-family house and a condominium townhouse unit. Undoubtedly the r e a l choice between unit types would have even been greater i n terms of un i t costs i f the study was conducted around 1969-1970. From mid-1972 to the present prices have escalated so rapidly and to such a l e v e l that for the majority of buyers there i s almost no choice. Average single-family units i n the remote suburban areas (e.g. south Langley) now commonly s e l l i n the $55,000 range. The few townhouse units which have been b u i l t over the past 12 months, r e l a t i v e to a l l other types of housing, consistently s e l l i n the $55,000 range or higher. Households capable of buying a new unit i n the $25,000 to $40,000 range must now s e l e c t from condominium apartment units i n 3-storey frame buildings. For the majority of purchasers the choice i s now between a condominium s u i t e or townhouse. presently, and perhaps f o r several years to come,^ a l l but the most affluent sector of the home-buying market w i l l make purchase decisions based almost exclusively on economic factors and not according to preferences governed by an i n t e r e s t i n pursuing a p a r t i c u l a r l i f e s t y l e . - 128 -Thus, i f the objective of subsequent research would be to obtain meaningful data from a wide cross-section of households, i t should be c a r r i e d out i n an urban se t t i n g where market conditions are more stable and p r i c e variations more uniform than applies at this time i n Greater Vancouver (e.g. Edmonton or Calgary). 2. pata C o l l e c t i o n With Time-Activity Budgets The techniques employed here i n gathering and analyzing data are generally those commonly used i n the f i e l d of s o c i a l science research. The use of budgets i s not Widely practised and presented some major d i f f i c u l t i e s . At the time of data c o l l e c t i o n , l i t t l e information about budgets could be found. However, lack of precedent should not necessarily deter one from using a technique which appears to have u t i l i t y i n a s p e c i f i c task. The manner i n which budgets were able to be used proved to be too r e s t r i c t i v e to allow any recurring pattern of a c t i v i t i e s to reveal i t s e l f . Gathering data f o r the respondent's previous work-day and non-work-day allows only a narrow glimpse into the time-activity schedule of that re-spondent. Among the hazards of re l y i n g e n t i r e l y on data gathered i n a 'one-shot' interview session are the problems of r e c a l l and the l i k l i h o o d that days reported are not t y p i c a l with respect f o r their a c t i v i t y pattern. The preferred approach to obtaining more r e l i a b l e - 129 -data i s time-consuming and may be c o s t l y . The method used by Michelson (1970) i s to have respondents keep da i l y diarys of their a c t i v i t i e s and other pertinent information. This re-quires f u l l and consistent co-operation from the subjects and may even require some f i n a n c i a l inducement to encourage proper record-keeping. While there s t i l l can be no r e a l assurance that the diary i s kept regularly and not f i l l e d i n just p r i o r to mailing or pick-up, this approach does t h e o r e t i c a l l y re-duce problems of r e c a l l and perhaps even bias which sometimes occurs as a reaction to a 'one-shot' interview session. Regardless of which means i s used to obtain budgets, the d i f f i c u l t y of c l a s s i f y i n g and categorizing data remains. For reasons already discussed, a c t i v i t i e s reported were la b e l l e d either dwelling or non-dwelling unit-oriented. Understandably, a f u l l e r treatment of the l i f e s t y l e d e f i n i t i o n would require a more complex approach to analysis, such as the factor a n a l y t i c technique used by Michelson (1970). 3. Independent Variable: LIFESTYLE From the outset the objective was to demonstrate that d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n among households occurred f o r other than s t r i c t l y economic reasons. Drawing support from the behavioral viewpoint which relates the patterning of urban phenomena to c o l l e c t i v e decision and choice behavior, i t was contended that households would sort themselves out by th e i r l i f e s t y l e s . - 130 F i r s t of a l l , how does one meaningfully define ' l i f e s t y l e ' ? Certainly s u f f i c i e n t evidence exists showing that people have d i f f e r e n t s t y l e s of l i v i n g . People pursue a diverse range of d a i l y a c t i v i t i e s , hold to d i f f e r e n t value systems, earn d i f f e r e n t incomes and exhibit d i f f e r e n t consumer behaviors to name only the more obvious at t r i b u t e s of the concept. These are displayed in a variety of d i s t i n c t i v e combinations and are i n d i c a t i v e of p a r t i c u l a r l i f e s t y l e s . For research purposes the concept must be capable of being used for more than description only. i t must be capable of being operationally defined, such that c e r t a i n l i f e s t y l e s belong to certain groups or i n d i v i d u a l s , while others do not. Even more c r i t i c a l than t h i s , a selected d e f i n i t i o n must be appropriate to a p a r t i c u l a r research problem. Since the operationalization of a d e f i n i t i o n re-quires that i t be reduced to i t s most basic essentials, only p a r t i c u l a r elements may be included. Here, the ' a c t i v i t y location orientation' determined the household's l i f e s t y l e . Either the s t y l e was home-oriented or non-home-oriented. Upon testing t h i s d e f i n i t i o n however, there was i n s u f f i c i e n t correspondence between l i f e s t y l e s and their \"assigned\" dwelling types to c l e a r l y support the hypothesis. Subsequent work in this area w i l l have to deal with the problem of r e f i n i n g the selected d e f i n i t i o n , perhaps a - 131 -relationship s i m i l a r to the one hypothesized here does i n f a c t exist, but w i l l not be evident unless a more compre-hensive d e f i n i t i o n i s found. B. MOVING BEYOND THE BEHAVIORAL APPROACH !• Behavioral Bases of D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n Some evidence has been gathered which points to elements other than those e s s e n t i a l l y economic which are responsible f o r the observed s p a t i a l patterning of house-holds. These are behavioral bases of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r -e n t i a t i o n and have been incorporated here in t o the l i f e s t y l e concept. While certain hypothesized behavior d i d correspond with p a r t i c u l a r dwelling choices, the evidence gathered was not conclusive. In part t h i s can be explained by pointing out that households interviewed had not occupied t h e i r dwellings f o r more than two years (the average occupancy was only 14 months), and probably had not yet s e t t l e d i n t o an i d e n t i f i a b l e l i f e s t y l e pattern i n that p a r t i c u l a r s e t t i n g . Further explanation f o r this r e l a t e s to error i n the dwelling search process. Many of the townhouse respondents indicated they would not choose that dwelling-type again. Presumably this group would not take f u l l advantage of the freedom from outside chores which townhouse l i v i n g provides, and this would of course bias the r e s u l t s . - 132 -Although information was not deliberately s o l i c i t e d concerning people's f e e l i n g s about th e i r r e s i d e n t i a l s i t u a -tion, s u f f i c i e n t comments were offerred to cause the writer to believe that the most basic d i f f e r e n t i a t i n g mechanism i s \"personal a t t i t u d e \" toward one's type and place of residence. 2* A t t i t u d i n a l Bases of D i f f e r e n t i a t i o n On the strength of only p a r t i a l evidence this appears to be a reasonable p o s i t i o n to take. A l l s i n g l e -family households showed a d e f i n i t e i n t e r e s t i n t h e i r dwelling-unit and i t s s e t t i n g . It was not simply a house, and the majority of respondents appeared to attach considerable emotional value to t h e i r \"dwelling place\". Both t h e i r search behavior and comments about present and future housing i n -tentions indicated such an attachment. Of the townhouse group, only the Port Coquitlam-Port Moody-Burnaby sample gave any i n d i c a t i o n of such congruence between the dwelling they l i v e d i n and t h e i r l i f e s t y l e . The above observations would suggest that subsequent research using the l i f e s t y l e concept explore how \"pride of ownership\", \"desire for control over one's r e s i d e n t i a l en-vironment\" or even \"sense of t e r r i t o r i a l i t y \" might be incor-porated into an operational d e f i n i t i o n . It i s conceivable that in situations where people are able to exercise choice between a l t e r n a t i v e dwelling arrangements, the bases of d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n may only be - 133 -disguised as being related to overt behaviors while actually stemming from fundamental personal and c u l t u r a l differences. In pursuing the more fundamental bases of choice behavior, a researcher commences with the supposition that where choice among items exists, an i n d i v i d u a l makes a selection according to h i s personal preference or d i s p o s i t i o n toward each a l t e r n a t i v e . Such dispositions are r e f l e c t i o n s of one's c u l t u r a l heritage, which embraces attitudes, b e l i e f s , values and sentiments. The single-family house i s often considered by urbanists to be the l a s t major physical l i n k i n the c i t y with our r u r a l past. The TH owned i n condominium fashion has arrived to take i t s place, i t i s t o t a l l y urban, and as yet i s not t o t a l l y acceptable. Research i n t o personal dispositions toward one's environment i s i n i t s embryonic stage. MCKechnie (1970, p. 320) has developed a research instrument c a l l e d the Environmental Response Inventory (ERI), whereby he may d i s -cover and assess \"environmental dispositions which are personalogically meaningful and which possess p r e d i c t i v e u t i l i t y i n forecasting s i g n i f i c a n t environment-related behavior\". By i d e n t i f y i n g personality t r a i t s and attitudes toward a variety of issues he i s attempting to determine t h e i r d i s p o s i t i o n toward their environment. By establishing t h i s , he can more thoroughly understand an ind i v i d u a l ' s use of his environment, as well as more prec i s e l y forecast such use i n the future. - 134 -This approach to understanding human response to the environment appears to have v a l i d i t y to the study of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . Subsequent studies r e l a t i n g such d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n to l i f e s t y l e differences would benefit greatly by incorporating both behavioral and a t t i t u d i n a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s i n the concept. C. A NOTE ON VALUE AND APPLICATION The findings are believed to have value i n the study of r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n through i d e n t i f y i n g and r e i n -forcing the importance of non-economic factors i n the process of dwelling-unit s e l e c t i o n . L i f e s t y l e s described and dwelling types compared i n this p i l o t study were selected primarily f o r reasons of managability. Subsequent studies must go well beyond t h i s , r e f i n i n g the l i f e s t y l e concept and applying i t to a l l types of research questions about urban population d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n . Of p a r t i c u l a r i n t e r e s t to urban geographers should be the relationship between l i f e s t y l e differences and choice behavior among a l l types of s p a t i a l l y d i s t r i b u t e d urban places or events. Although the term ' l i f e s t y l e 1 has only recently been used i n common parlance where urban design problems are concerned, i t i s now a well-used ( i f not understood) term i n discussions among planners and developers regarding r e s i d e n t i a l development proposals. Trusting that the common objective now i s to produce urban places i n which to have one's home, - 135 -work and recreation (e.g. False Creek, hopefully), and which are not stereotyped and d u l l , i t i s important that serious attempts are made to better understand the l i f e s t y l e concept as well as accommodate i t s many variations. D. A PARTING WORD Hopefully this study w i l l stimulate further research i n t o questions not only about l i f e s t y l e differences and r e s i d e n t i a l d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n , but also the re l a t i o n s h i p of l i f e s t y l e differences to other s p a t i a l l y d i s t r i b u t e d a c t i v i -t i e s and phenomena which r e f l e c t human choice among alterna-t i v e s . I f this much i s accomplished, then f o r the writer t h i s work w i l l have been rewarded. - 136 -LITERATURE CITED Adler, A., 1931, The pattern of L i f e , London, England; Kegan Paul. Berry, B.J.L., and Horton, F., 1970, Geographic Perspectives on Urban Systems, Englewood C l i f f s , New jersey; prentice-Hall, Inc.. B e l l , W., 1968, \"The City, The Suburb and a Theory of Soc i a l Choice\", i n Greer, S., McElrath, D.L., Minar, C.W., and Orleans, p., (Eds.), The New urbanization, pp. 146-166, New York; St. Martin's press. 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Woods, L.J., 1967, \"Perception Studies i n Geography\", i n Lowenthal, D., (Ed.), Environmental Perception and Behavior, University of Chicago, Dept. of Geography, Research Paper, No. 109. - 142 -APPENDIX 'A' INTERVIEW SCHEDULE u r b a n l i f e s t y l e s t u d A SURVEY OF HOUSEHOLDS IN METROPOLITAN VANCOUVER REGARDING THE SELECTION OF DWELLING TYPE AND LOCATION mr. marty Schmidt DEPARTMENT of GEOGRAPHY UNIVERSITY of BRITISH COLUMBIA march, 1972 - 143 -HOUSEHOLD INTERVIEW SCHEDULE HOUSING EXPERIENCE A. Since Marriage 1. How many d i f f e r e n t dwellings have you l i v e d i n , i n -cluding this one? _ 2. For your previous 5 dwellings, please i n d i c a t e : TYPE LOCATION TIME OCCUPIED OWNED VALUE MONTHRENT less $100 $175 $100 -175 plus 3. How long have you l i v e d i n this dwelling? (months) 4. What was the approximate purchase price? $ — 5. What was the requested downpayment? $ _ 6. Could you have spent more on a dwelling unit? (y . . . i f 'yes', state the approximate maximum range. 7. In which other municipalities in Metropolitan Vancouver did you seek to purchase a dwelling? LOCATION TYPES PRICE RANGES 8. Had you thought of renting rather than buying? (yes) (no) 9. Approximately how long had you been a c t i v e l y searching for a dwelling to purchase? (months) - 144 -10. What comments do you have on the matter of 'PRIVACY' as a factor i n your f i n a l choice? B. During Childhood and Adolescence H 1. Where were you raised? (up to age 18) Country: W 2 Were you raised (a) on a farm? (b) town under 5000? (c) town 5000 - 25,000? (d) c i t y 25,000 plus? H W While growing up at home, with what type of dwelling and tenure arrangement were you most f a m i l i a r ? (a) owned house (b) rented house (c) owned other form ( ) (d) rented semi-detached (e) rented apartment (TYPE: (f) other ) H W 4. I f you spent several years i n d i f f e r e n t types of dwellings, please i n d i c a t e : SIZES OF COMMUNITIES TYPES OF DWELLINGS OWNED RENTED H W ANTICIPATED HOUSING DURING NEXT FIVE YEARS A. Dwelling 1. Does this dwelling meet your household's present needs? (yes) (no) - 145 -2. If your answer i s 'NO', what feature or features do you consider unsatisfactory? B. Location 1. Does the location of your dwelling meet your household's present needs? (yes) (no) 2. I f your answer i s 'NO', what feature or features do you consider unsatisfactory, and f o r whom? FEATURE UNSATISFACTORY FOR: REASON C. Possible Moves 1. Do you anticipate moving from this unit i n the next: (a) 2 years? (b) 5 years? 2. I f you plan to move, what type(s) of dwelling would you look for? TYPE OWN PRICE RANGE RENT single family house single family semi-detached townhouse (rowhouse) apartment (TYPE: ) other 3. To what location(s) i n the Lower Mainland would you consider moving? (begin with most preferred) LOCATION I REASON(S) FOR CHOICE - 146 -BIOGRAPHICAL DATA A. Age Husband years wife 1st. c h i l d 2nd. c h i l d 3rd. c h i l d 4th. c h i l d other ( ) B. Education LEVEL H W some high school high school graduate technical t r a i n i n g some university university degree(s) C. Occupation 1. What i s the primary occupation of the husband?. 2. I f the wife works, what i s her occupation? ._ 3. i f the wife works, i s i t : (a) f u l l time? (b) part time?. 4. What i s the location of the husband's work? ADDRESS 5. What i s the location of the wife's work? ADDRESS D. Income HUSBAND WIFE HOUSEHOLD INCOME RANGE less than $5,000 $5,000 - $7,000 $7,001 - $9,000 $9,001 - $11,000 $11,001 - $13,000 $13,001 - $15,000 more than $15,000 2. What would you anti c i p a t e your HOUSEHOLD INCOME RANGE to be i n 5 years time (1977)? $_ . -- 147 -TIME - ACTIVITY BUDGET O husband O w i f e Qprevious day other than Sat. or Sun. Qprevious Sunday TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY TYPICAL 8 :00 8:30 9 :00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3 :00 3 :30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7 :00 7:30 8:00 8 :30 9 :00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12 :00 - 148 -TIME- ACTIVITY BUDGET O husband Owife Q p r e v i o u s day other than Sat. or Sun. Q p r e v i o u s Sunday TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY TYPICAL 8 :00 8 :30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12 :00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3 :00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7 :30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 -149 -1. What a c t i v i t i e s are you involved i n that occur (a) each week but not on the 2 days described here: DAY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY (b) each month (or bi-monthly) but not i n the week described here? WEEK DAY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY 2. What major a c t i v i t i e s or events do you engage i n each year (perhaps major seasonal events, e.g. s k i vacation, business, club or church convention, holiday season excursions, conventions, big game or b i r d game hunting, f i s h i n g t r i p s , etc.) but have not accounted f o r so far? MONTH ACTIVITY LOCATION DURATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP R E S P O N D E N T ' S C O M M E N T S - 150 -TIME .- , ACTIVITY. BUDGET O husband O wife Qprevious day other than Sat. or Sun. Oprevious Sunday TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY TYPICAL 8:00 8:30 9:00 9 :30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12 :00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3 :00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6 :00 6:30 7 :00 7:30 8 :00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 - 151 -TIME - ACTIVITY BUDGET Onusband Owife Qprevious day other than Sat. or Sun. (^previous Sunday TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY TYPICAL 8:00 8 :30 9:00 9 :30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12 :00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2 :00 2:30 3 :00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8 :00 8 :30 9:00 9 :30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12 :00 - 152 -1. What a c t i v i t i e s are you involved i n that occur: (a) each week but not on the 2 days described here: DAY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY (b) each month (or bi-monthly) but hot i n the week described here? WEEK DAY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP OTHER ACTIVITY 2. What major a c t i v i t i e s or events do you engage in each year (perhaps major seasonal events, e.g. s k i vacation, business, club or church convention, holiday season excursions, conventions, big game or b i r d game hunting, f i s h i n g t r i p s , etc.) but have not accounted f o r so far? MONTH ACTIVITY LOCATION DURATION WITH WHOM RELATIONSHIP ********************************************************** R E S P O N D E N T * S C O M M E N T S - 153 -APPENDIX 'B» GENERAL CLASSIFICATION of PRINCIPAL CLASSES of HOUSEHOLD ACTIVITIES Class Description Income Producing C h i l d - r a i s i n g and Family Events Education and I n t e l l e c t u a l Development S p i r i t u a l Development Soc i a l A c t i v i t i e s Recreation and Relaxation On-the-job a c t i v i t y , moonlighting Professional a c t i v i t y (union, society) A c t i v i t y to improve income-producing po t e n t i a l (evening classes, inventing, writing) Overseeing and p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n play Overseeing children's study, p r a c t i c e Outings with children Family outings (weekend t r i p s ) Attending school, college, adult classes, etc. Attending meetings f o r improvement of education, arts (PTA, Art Guild, etc.) P a r t i c i p a t i n g i n drama, orchestra, book clubs, etc. Attending plays and exhibitions Attending and p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n church a c t i v i t i e s Taking part i n organizations concerned with human welfare (missions, etc.) Attending and p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n organized s o c i a l a c t i v i t i e s (country club, c i t y clubs, a t h l e t i c club, etc.) Engaging i n informal types of s o c i a l i z i n g ( v i s i t i n g friends, dating, p a r t i e s , outings i n groups to movies, etc.) Attending spectator events (games, races) P a r t i c i p a t i n g i n a c t i v i t i e s alone or with others (golf, swimming, bowling, etc.) Individual forms of physical and mental relaxation (T.V., naps, gardening, reading, hobby, etc.) - 154 -Appendix 'B' continued Class Description Club A c t i v i t i e s Community Service and P o l i t i c a l A c t i v i t i e s A c t i v i t i e s Associated with Food, Shopping, Health, and si m i l a r needs Taking part i n spe c i a l i n t e r e s t clubs (Garden Club, Stamp Club, etc.) Attending Luncheon or Dinner Clubs Attending meetings of p a t r i o t i c groups (Legion, etc.) Attending f r a t e r n a l groups (Elks, Kinsmen, etc.) Attending and/or p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n c i v i c improvement a c t i v i t i e s (Ratepayer's Association, etc.) Serving on City Council, Planning Commission P o l i t i c a l action a c t i v i t i e s Fund-raising a c t i v i t i e s and s i m i l a r volunteer e f f o r t s Meals at home, or restaurant Shopping (convenience, specialty, and major consumer goods) V i s i t s to doctor, dentist, h o s p i t a l Home and yard maintenance SOURCE: Chapin, F. Stuart J r . , and Hightower, H.C., 1968, Household A c t i v i t y Systems: A P i l o t Investigation, Chapel H i l l , N.C.; University of North Carolina, i n s t i t u t e f o r Research i n S o c i a l Science, Centre for Urban and Regional Studies. - 155 -APPENDIX 'C HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTIC COMPARISONS BY MARKET AREA AND DWELLING TYPE - 156 -C O N T E N T S A. S I N G L E - F A M I L Y H O U S E H O L D S I N TWO S U B - M A R K E T S R I C H M O N D - L A D N E R ( R I L A ) A N D PORT C O Q U I T L A M -P Q R T MOODY-BURNABY ( P C M B ) . *v 1. Biographical Data 158 a. age and c h i l d d i s t r i b u t i o n 158 b. l e v e l of education 158 c. household income 159 d. occupations . . 159 e. work locations 160 2. Housing Experience 161 a. during childhood and adolescence 161 ( i ) country of o r i g i n and sizes of communities l i v e d i n 161 ( i i ) dwelling types and tenure arrangements experienced 161 b. since marriage 162 ( i ) dwelling types experienced and mobility . . . 162 ( i i ) search behavior p r i o r to making present choice 163 ( i i i ) length of occupancy i n present dwelling . . 164 (iv) purchase p r i c e , downpayment, a b i l i t y to spend more 164 3. Anticipated Housing During Next Five Years 165 a. dwelling location and choice s a t i s f a c t i o n . . . . 165 b. anticipated moves, dwelling types and preferred locations 166 4. Summary and Conclusions 167 B. CONDOMINIUM TOWNHOUSE HOUSEHOLDS IN TWO SUB-MARKETS: RICHMOND-LADNER ( R I L A ) AND PORT COQUITLAM-PORT MOODY-BURNABY ( P C M B ) . 1. Biographical Data 167 a. age and c h i l d d i s t r i b u t i o n 167 b. l e v e l of education 168 c. household income 168 d. occupations 169 e. work locations 170 - 157 -2. Housing Experience 171 a. during childhood and adolescence 171 ( i ) country of or i g i n and sizes of communities l i v e d i n 171 ( i i ) dwelling types and tenure arrangements experienced 171 b. since marriage 172 ( i ) dwelling types experienced and mobility . . . . 172 ( i i ) search behavior p r i o r to making present choice 173 ( i i i ) length of occupancy i n present dwelling . . . 174 (iv) purchase p r i c e , downpayment, a b i l i t y to spend more 175 3. Anticipated Housing During Next Five Years 176 a. dwelling location and choice s a t i s f a c t i o n 176 b. anticipated moves, dwelling types and preferred locations . . . . . . . 176 4. Summary and Conclusions 177 - 158 -A. SINGLE-FAMILY HOUSEHOLDS IN TWO SUB-MARKETS — RICHMOND-LADNER (R I L A) AND PORT COQUITLAM-PORT MOODY-BURNABY (P C M B) . 1. Biographical Data a. age and c h i l d d i s t r i b u t i o n As shown i n Table 1, there i s not a large difference i n the ages of wives. While the four year spread between the husbands' mean ages i s not large, i t may have a noticeable e f f e c t on the household's income. Ages of the eldest children are very close, and the higher child-per-household r a t i o i n PCMB could be a r e f l e c t i o n of s l i g h t l y older parents. Table 1 AGE AND CHILD RATIO COMPARISONS PARENTS ELDEST CHILDREN GROUP N CHILD per -H W Mean Age HOUSEHOLD RILA 8 28 26 4 .5 PCMB 8 32 27 5 1.4 b. l e v e l of education On this variable, there seems to be very l i t t l e common ground f o r the two submarkets. Table 2 reveals that while 45% of husbands and wives combined i n PCMB have had some university education, only 19% of the RILA sample have exper-ienced t h i s . This difference i s largely due to the number of husbands receiving university education, being 76% i n the PCMB sample as opposed to 26% i n the RILA group. - 159 -c. household income The higher average age of the husband and higher education l e v e l of husbands and wives i n the PCMB group i s cl e a r l y r e f l e c t e d i n household income. Table 3 shows that while 50% of the RILA group earn less than $11,000 per annum, only 12% of the PCMB sample are i n that category. Over twice as many PCMB households are i n the $11-15,000 bracket, which r e f l e c t s i n the average annual income being $1,000 more than the RILA households receive. Table 2 PERCENTAGE REACHING DIFFERENT EDUCATION LEVELS LEVEL RILA (N=8) PCMB (N=8) H W H/W H W H/W High School Grad or less 62 50 56 12 50 31 Technical Training 12 25 12 12 37 25 University GraM or less 26 25 19 76 13 45 Table 3 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS IN DIFFERENT INCOME BRACKETS GROUP N $7-11,000 $11-15,000 $15,000+ Mean $ RILA 8 50 25 25 12,000 PCMB 8 12 62 26 13,000 d. occupations To the extent that the households are d i s s i m i l a r i n terms of le v e l of education and income, they are d i s s i m i l a r i n their occupations. Table 4 shows the actual numbers found i n - 160 -s i x work categories which embrace a l l occupations reported. As expected, a higher number of husbands and wives i n PCMB than i n RILA are found i n professional occupations and careers requiring formal post-secondary education. Where work patterns among wives i s concerned, an almost i d e n t i c a l number worked f u l l - t i m e and part-time i n each location, e. work locations From Table 5 i t appears that l i v i n g i n close proximity to work was not the major factor i n house s e l e c t i o n . The RILA group shows a stronger orientation to downtown Vancouver than the PCMB group, but considering the entire sample, (N=23), 65% worked i n that area. It should be noted here that commuting distance i n time i s approximately the same for each group (30 minutes). Table 4 ACTUAL DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY OCCUPATION OCCUPATION CATEGORY GROUP RILA PCMB H W H W N=8 N=4 N=8 N=3 Professional 1 5 1 Business 2 2 _ 1 Technical 2 — 1 1 C l e r i c a l 1 2 — S k i l l e d Trades 2 — _ mm Unskilled - - 2 -- 161 -Table 5 WORK LOCATIONS OF RESPONDENTS (actual numbers) LOCATION GROUP RILA PCMB H W H W N=8 N=4 N=8 N=3 Vancouver downtown 6 3 5 1 Burnaby - - 3 1 Del ta 1 1 — «, Port Coquitlam - — 1 elsewhere 1 - - -2. Housing Experience a. during childhood and adolescence ( i ) country of o r i g i n and sizes of communities l i v e d i n In order to determine whether the r e s i d e n t i a l ex-perience occurred i n si m i l a r c u l t u r a l contexts, households were asked to state where they spent most of their 'growing-up' years (agea 1 through 18). In each case, except for the RILA wives of whom 100% grew up i n Canada, 62% of the husbands and other wives were raised i n Canada with the remainder raised i n western European countries. Over 50% i n both areas came from c i t i e s with populations over 25,000. The same percentage of husbands spent their formative years i n one community. Wives came from less mobile backgrounds, with more than 80% reporting having l i v e d their f i r s t 18 years i n one place. ( i i ) dwelling types and tenure arrangements experienced - 162 -The choice of a single family dwelling f o r these households appears that i t might be associated with th e i r •at-home' l i v i n g s i t u a t i o n . Table 6 shows that i n t o t a l , the majority l i v e d i n family-owned homes. The PCMB group had the least amount of such experience, and also proved to have had more inter-community mobility during this period. Table 6 DWELLING TYPES AND TENURE ARRANGEMENTS EXPERIENCED % HUSBAND % WIFE GROUP N APT DX SF APT DX SF rent own rent rent own rent RILA 8 — — 100 100 PCMB 8 25 12 50 13 - 25 63 12 APT: apartment DX: duplex SF: single-family house b. since marriage ( i ) dwelling types experienced and mobility Both groups showed a considerable degree of simi-l a r i t y i n the i r housing experience since marriage. The RILA households occupied an average of 3.9 units from marriage to the time of interviewing, and the PCMB group occupied an average of 3.4. Table 7 shows that while a sim i l a r number of households in each group had experienced the d i f f e r e n t housing types shown, the higher t o t a l percentage of RILA households trying the d i f f e r e n t types indicates t h e i r l i v i n g pattern had been s l i g h t l y unsettled. The longer periods of - 163 -residence i n the case of the PCMB group should i n part r e f l e c t the s l i g h t l y older average age of husbands. Table 7 PERCENTAGE CF HOUSEHOLDS OCCUPYING DIFFERENT DWELLING TYPES AND LENGTH OF OCCUPANCY IN EACH APT X YEARS DX X YEARS SINGLE X YEARS GROUP N % LIVED % LIVED FAMILY LIVED IN IN % IN RILA 8 75 1.3 25 1.0 50 1.2 PCMB 8 87 1.5 12 2.0 37 2.3 ( i i ) search behavior p r i o r to making present choice None of the single-family households interviewed looked only i n the i r chosen location for a suitable dwelling. The majority searched three other locations before buying, and f i n a l choices were most often made because of the par-t i c u l a r features of one of the units. The mean number of months spent a c t i v e l y searching by the PCMB group was longer than f o r RILA households (5.6 as compared with 3.1 months), but this was largely due to two PCMB households searching f o r longer than f i v e months. Both groups are remarkably s i m i l a r in terms of their preference f o r the chosen dwelling type right from the outset. Of a l l locations where both dwelling types were available, RILA respondents gave p a r t i c u l a r attention to the si n g l e -family unit i n 94% of the cases, while 93% applies to the PCMB sample. - 164 -Bach household was asked to comment on the importance of 'privacy* i n making a decision. Understandably, t h i s term has a wide variety of interpretations, each depending on a household's needs and wants. Almost every response was q u a l i f i e d , and i n the majority of cases f o r each group, was taken to mean \"one's a b i l i t y to control his outside space without interference from neighbors\". More s p e c i f i c a l l y , these households wanted to be completely independent as to their use of space and control over children's a c t i v i t i e s around t h e i r home. Other responses considered noteworthy were related to 'sound privacy' and 'opportunity f o r garden-ing and landscaping'. ( i i i ) length of occupancy i n present dwelling Perhaps the variable on which the RILA and PCMB group i s most d i s s i m i l a r i s i n th e i r length of occupancy of th e i r home. The average period for the former group i s only 10 months, as compared with 22 months f o r the l a t t e r . ( i v ) purchase p r i c e , downpayment, and a b i l i t y to spend more Table 8 shows that both groups have purchased s i m i l a r l y p r i c e d dwellings and made si m i l a r downpayments (probably the minimum). - 165 -Table 8 M E A N P U R C H A S E P R I C E A N D DOWNPAYMBNT GROUP N PURCHASE DOWNPAYMENT PRICE RILA 8 $23,200 $2,100 PCMB 8 $25,500 $2,400 While each household i s committed to si m i l a r mortgage pay-ments, i t i s important to note i n Table 9 that the PCMB group could have purchased more expensive housing i f they had planned to do so. Table 9 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS CAPABLE OF SPENDING MORE AND AMOUNT EXTRA GROUP N % % CAPABLE EXTRA RILA 8 37 22 PCMB 8 25 39 This relates d i r e c t l y to and confirms the differences re-ported i n household incomes f o r the two groups (see Table 3). 3. Anticipated Housing During Next Five Years a. dwelling location and choice s a t i s f a c t i o n A l l households except one expressed s a t i s f a c t i o n with their dwelling and i t s location. i t i s possible that such unanimity would be reduced i f one probed in t o the usual problem areas l i k e 'construction defects' and 'neighbor - 166 -re l a t i o n s ' , but as this was to be a completely free response, these topics were not suggested. The single coraplainer divided a l l problems equally between high property taxes, poor public transportation to downtown Vancouver, and his concern over what he considered a 'low s o c i a l status neighborhood'. b. anticipated moves, dwelling types and preferred locations Table 10 confirms the general s a t i s f a c t i o n of the respondents with the conventional house. A l l households stated that they would choose to l i v e i n another such dwelling, but the majority do not plan to make that move •v o l u n t a r i l y 1 f o r another 10 years. Table 10 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS ANTICIPATING A MOVE AND DWELLING TYPE PREFERRED ™ NUMBER OF YEARS BEFORE GROUP N MOVE EXPECTED APT TH SF 2 5 10+ RILA 8 — 25 75 100 PCMB 8 — 12 88 - - 100 If the household could be free to determine i t s next location, 37% of each group expressed a desire for a more ru r a l s e t t i n g either i n the outer fringes of Greater Vancouver or i n the Okanagan region. Of the remainder, a si m i l a r percentage of the RILA and PCMB groups opt f o r other - 167 -Richmond and North Vancouver locations respectively. A th i r d , smaller group desired 'good qu a l i t y ' and 'quiet' neighborhoods i n Vancouver's west side or other better q u a l i t y and cl o s e - i n locations. 4. Summary and Conclusion Most of the difference i s found i n age, education and income c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , and to a lesser extent t h e i r previous housing experience. Such differences are not great however, and are not considered s u f f i c i e n t to o f f s e t their uniform expressions of preference f o r their chosen dwelling-type and an t i c i p a t i o n of continuing on i n simi l a r accommodati It appears to be appropriate to regard these house-holds as members of an i d e n t i f i a b l e market sector or a 'dwelling preference cohort'. B. CONDOMINIUM TOWNHOUSE HOUSEHOLDS IN TWO SUB-MARKETS: RICHMOND-LADNER ( R I L A ) AND PORT COQUITLAM-PORT MOODY-BURNABY (P C M B) . . !• Biographical Data a. age and c h i l d d i s t r i b u t i o n For both husbands and wives, the age difference between the groups i s very s t r i k i n g . The mean difference of 13 years between husbands and 8 years between wives as shown i n Table 11 i s r e f l e c t e d i n the c h i l d - r a t i o figures. RILA households are just entering the child-rearing stage while those i n the PCMB group have already had some experience i n that phase. - 168 -Table 11 AGE AND CHILD-RATIO COMPARISONS GROUP N PARENTS ELDEST CHILD MEAN AGE CHILDREN PER HOUSEHOLD H W RILA PCMB 8 8 27 40 36 34 1 7 .38 1.30 b. l e v e l of education The RILA group, while younger, has had considerably more post-secondary education as i s evident i n Table 12. In spite of the f a c t that the PCMB respondents have been i n the labor force longer, the more educated RILA group should show higher family earnings. c. household income The relationship between higher education and household income i s evident i n Table 13. The young, better-paid professionals i n the RILA sample earn the most, while the PCMB group, engaged in more service, c l e r i c a l and non-technical jobs earn the least . These households are not homogeneous i n terms of their earnings yet they are committed to si m i l a r amounts of housing expenditure. What must be remembered i s that the younger households have only been earning their income f o r a short time, and their older counterparts have had a longer opportunity to save. - 169 -Table 12 PERCENTAGE REACHING DIFFERENT EDUCATION LEVELS LEVEL RILA (N=8) PCMB (N= :8) H W H/W H W H/W High School Grad or less 25 37 31 37 63 50 Technical Training 12 25 19 25 - 12 University Gra'd or less 63 38 50 38 37 37 Table 13 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS IN DIFFERENT INCOME BRACKETS GROUP N $7-11,000 $11-15,000 $15,000+ Mean $ RILA 8 - 50 50 $15,000 PCMB 8 25 62 13 $12,000 d. occupations Much of the difference i n income between the RILA and PCMB samples i s r e f l e c t e d i n the breakdown of occupations shown i n Table 14. RILA households have the greatest number of f u l l - t i m e working wives ( r e c a l l the c h i l d - r a t i o ) and, combined with their higher education, help to create high household incomes. PCMB members are largely represented i n technical jobs and s k i l l e d trades. Combined with fewer working wives, the annual household incomes are understandably lower. - 170 -Table 14 ACTUAL DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY OCCUPATION GROUP OCCUPATION RILA PCMB CATEGORY H W H W N=8 N=5 N=8 N=2 Professional 2 3 1 „ Bus iness 6 — 4 Technical - 1 1 _ C l e r i c a l - 1 - 1 S k i l l e d Trade - - 2 1 Unsk i l l e d - - - -e. work locations Downtown Vancouver i s the location of employment f o r most husbands and wives i n each sample as can be seen i n Table 15. It i s not certain whether these households would have chosen townhouses i n Vancouver City i f they had been f o r sale i n the same p r i c e range. Their choices having to be made from among the suburbs, one location had l i t t l e more to offer than another i n terms of shortening the common 30 minute journey to work. - 171 -Table 15 WORK LOCATIONS OF RESPONDENTS (actual numbers) LOCATION GROUP RILA PCMB H W H W N=8 N=5 N=8 N=3 Vancouver downtown 6 4 5 2 Richmond 1 1 — -Burnaby - - 1 -Surrey 1 - -Port Coquitlam - - - 1 elsewhere - 2 2. Housing Experience a. during childhood and adolescence ( i ) country of or i g i n and sizes of communities l i v e d i n Approximately 70% of a l l husbands and 85% of a l l wives grew up i n Canada (ages 1 through 18). Also, 70% of a l l respondents spent t h e i r formative years i n c i t i e s with populations of 25,000 or more. Both groups showed remarkable geographic s t a b i l i t y while young. A l l respondents except f o r one couple i n the PCMB sample grew up i n only one community. ( i i ) dwelling types and tenure arrangements experienced Of the two groups, only the RILA husbands had a l l their housing experience i n single-family dwellings --- most of which were owned by their parents. PCMB husbands most - 172 -frequently experienced rental accommodation. The wives closely resemble each other i n th e i r backgrounds, as i s seen i n Table 16. Table 16 DWELLING TYPES AND TENURE ARRANGEMENTS EXPERIENCED % H U S B A N D % W I F E G R O U P N A P T D X S F A P T D X S F rent own rent rent own rent R I L A 8 - — 75 25 25 *- 63 12 P C M B 8 37 13 50 - 12 12 76 A P T : apartment DX: duplex SF: single-family house b. since marriage ( i ) dwelling types experienced and mobility Upon examining t h i s data i t must be remembered that the groups d i f f e r e d considerably i n average age, and pre-sumably, length of time married. This i s r e f l e c t e d i n the average number of units occupied —•- 3.6 f o r the RILA group and 6.2 for the P C M B households. There does exi s t , however, s i m i l a r i t y between the groups where dwelling type i s con-cerned. Table 17 shows that only apartments or single-family dwellings were l i v e d i n , with the P C M B group having done a greater amount of 'experimenting' with d i f f e r e n t s i n g l e -family unit s . - 173 -Table 17 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS OCCUPYING DIFFERENT DWELLING TYPES iiND LENGTH OF OCCUPANCY IN EACH X YEARS X YEARS SINGLE X YEARS GROUP N APT LIVED DX LIVED FAMILY LIVED % IN % IN % IN RILA 8 75 1.6 _ 37 2.6 PCMB 8 75 2.3 - -7 5 2.8 ( i i ) search behavior p r i o r to making present choice It should f i r s t be noted that townhouse developments were not as widely d i s t r i b u t e d as new single-family t r a c t s . Therefore, i t i s not surprising to learn that most house-holds i n each group did search more than two other locations p r i o r to buying. In both RILA and PCMB, one household chose the f i r s t development i t v i s i t e d . RILA households spent considerably more time i n th e i r dwelling search than d i d the i r counterparts (7 months and 4 months re s p e c t i v e l y ) . Since s p e c i f i c questions were not asked, i t can only be assumed that this p a r t i a l l y re-f l e c t e d t h e i r uncertainty about such matters as possible job transfers, d e s i r a b i l i t y of the dwelling and neighborhood f o r beginning a family, commuting to work, and the idea of be-coming the owner of a 'new' and 'strange' form of housing. Longer experience with homeowning and family l i v i n g applicable to the PCMB households may have helped to eliminate con-siderable f r u i t l e s s searching. It must be noted here also - 174 -that two PCMB households searched for even less than one month. Of a l l s p e c i f i c areas investigated where a dwelling might be purchased, both the RILA and PCMB groups appeared to be uncertain about their preference. The RILA group con~ f sidered the townhouse i n only 53% of the possible locations, and the PCMB group seriously considered the townhouse i n 50% of the locations searched. when respondents were asked about the importance of 'privacy' i n their dwelling choice, the majority i n both groups claimed i t was of l i t t l e importance. A frequent comment from the RILA group was that they \"looked forward to increased opportunities for meeting with neighbors\". Young mothers anticipated a good sense of \"community\" developing from i n t e r a c t i o n with other young mothers. Comments from the PCMB sample related less to matters of \"community\" and \"in t e r a c t i o n \" and more to the benefits of building up equity, ( i i i ) length of occupancy i n present dwelling Although the RILA group had spent an average of f i v e more months i n the i r present dwelling than the PCMB sample (14 months versus 9), the difference was not considered s i g n i f i c a n t to household a c t i v i t y behavior. In each case the time i s considered s u f f i c i e n t to get 'set t l e d i n ' and fa m i l i a r with the immediate neighborhood and community. Certainly nine months would be ample f o r 'joiners' to become - 175 -acti v e i n a f f a i r s and events outside t h e i r homes. (iv) purchase p r i c e , downpayment, and a b i l i t y to spend more Differences i n purchase p r i c e and downpayment between the RILA and PCMB groups are not large, as i s seen i n Table 18„ At the time the sample was taken, the RILA area contained most of the townhouse units on the market, with average prices s l i g h t l y below those being sold i n the major PCMB development of Simon Fraser H i l l s . Table 18 MEAN PURCHASE PRICE AND DOWNPAYMENT PURCHASE GROUP N PRICE DOWNPAYMENT RILA 8 $22,400 $1,200 PCMB 8 $24,900 $2,000 That the PCMB group has a larger representation i n the lower income brackets i s evident upon examining Table 19. The difference i n \"% EXTRA\" appears small however. This relates to the finding that the PCMB group i s least homo-geneous i n terms of income and education. - 176 -Table 19 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS CAPABLE OF SPENDING MORE AND AMOUNT EXTRA % % GROUP N CAPABLE EXTRA RILA 8 87 19 PCMB 8 50 14 3. Anticipated Housing During Next Five Years a. dwelling location and choice s a t i s f a c t i o n In the RILA as well as the PCMB samples, 87% ex-pressed s a t i s f a c t i o n with th e i r dwelling u n i t and l o c a t i o n . Regarding th e i r unit, the complainers stressed 'lack of inside storage space' and 'inadequate sound-proofing'. A l l location complaints were directed at poor a c c e s s i b i l i t y to downtown Vancouver, which i s a problem common to many suburban dwellers and not unique to th i s group. b. anticipated moves, dwelling types and preferred locations Table 20 reveals a remarkable inconsistency with e a r l i e r responses by almost a l l townhouse households. The entire sample stated that when i t was necessary to move, a single-family dwelling would be the preferred unit. There-fore, the e a r l i e r f i n d i n g of \" a l l households happy\" where dwelling s a t i s f a c t i o n was concerned must be regarded as a response to their immediate s i t u a t i o n rather than with the t o t a l dwelling concept i t s e l f . 177 -In each of the RILA and PCMB samples, 63% a n t i c i -pated moving by the end of f i v e years. This i n i t s e l f p a r t l y indicates a lack of i n t e r e s t i n drawing on the benefits offerred by a 'carefree' l i v i n g s i t u a t i o n . Table 20 PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS ANTICIPATING A MOVE AND DWELLING TYPE PREFERRED NUMBER OF YEARS BEFORE GROUP N MOVE EXPECTED APT TH SF 2 5 10+ RILA 8 13 50 37 O B 100 PCMB 8 25 38 37 - 100 The majority of both groups wished to move closer i n to Vancouver City i t s e l f , or at least be no further away than the North Shore. Only 25% of a l l households expressed a d e f i n i t e i n t e r e s t i n moving 'deeper' into the suburbs i n the pursuit of a more 'ex-urban' way of l i v i n g . 4. Summary and Conclusion The RILA sample appears to be s u f f i c i e n t l y d i f f e r e n t from their PCMB counterparts to warrant caution i n the interpr e t a t i o n of th e i r c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s and a c t i v i t i e s when analyzed as a sin g l e group. Perhaps the most c r i t i c a l differences r e l a t e to st a g e - i n - f a m i l y - l i f e - c y c l e , education, and correspondingly income p o t e n t i a l . - 178 -Taken i n turn, i t i s noted that the RILA sample has not yet been forced to structure the da i l y a c t i v i t y pattern around children,, Presumably, the PCMB households w i l l have begun to do so. With higher education levels and more trained, working wives, household incomes are lar g e r . I t i s presumed here that this would allow f o r a more intense a c t i v i t y pattern outside the home. Biographic data aside, the groups are s i m i l a r i n terms of the i r choice behavior and at least on th i s basis can be treated as a 'group'. Neither group appeared too anxious to se l e c t the townhouse over the conventional house, and i n f a c t most plan to buy a t r a d i t i o n a l unit when they move. Nevertheless, they appear to be equally w i l l i n g to 'experiment' with th e i r r e s i d e n t i a l environment f o r the present, and so chose the 'l a t e s t innovation' i n housing. This dwelling-type sample i s the least homogeneous of the two o v e r a l l , and i s least l i k e l y to show s i m i l a r i t y i n household a c t i v i t y patterns. "@en ; edm:hasType "Thesis/Dissertation"@en ; edm:isShownAt "10.14288/1.0093598"@en ; dcterms:language "eng"@en ; ns0:degreeDiscipline "Geography"@en ; edm:provider "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en ; dcterms:publisher "University of British Columbia"@en ; dcterms:rights "For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use."@en ; ns0:scholarLevel "Graduate"@en ; dcterms:title "Residential differentiation and lifestyles"@en ; dcterms:type "Text"@en ; ns0:identifierURI "http://hdl.handle.net/2429/19659"@en .