Behind the differentiation of suburban development in the hinterland of Bratislava, Slovakia

Abstract

Several tendencies seem to indicate that in the hinterland of Bratislava specific new residential zones are forming with a different socio-economic structure. This article analyses the hinterland of Bratislava from various perspectives of suburban development. The selection of variables covers the origin of in-migrants and their economic activity, education, and family status. Indicators of land use, housing construction, and property prices supplement these data. The data are processed based on a factorial ecology approach, which tries to discover the basic dimensions of the socio-spatial structure, and cluster analysis. Using these methods the authors identify similar clusters and categorise individual municipalities into relatively homogeneous units-suburban development types. The results lead to a number of very interesting findings. The same types of suburban municipalities are not arranged in concentric zones, which means that the factor of distance from the city does not play a prominent role. The prevailing factor is the sectorial structure, which reflects the different levels of attractiveness municipalities hold for different socio-economic groups of in-migrants. This article seeks to identify key factors that affect the formation of individual suburban zones and thus contributes to a better understanding of the processes that decisively shape the socio-spatial organisation of hinterlands in post-socialist cities today.