Why is Housing Always Satisfactory? A Study into the Impact of Preference and Experience on Housing Appreciation

Abstract

This study focuses on residents’ perceptions of residential quality concerning 23 different dwelling aspects. Respondents were asked to indicate their appreciation of these dwelling aspects on a scale ranging from 0 (“extremely unattractive”) to 100 (“extremely attractive”). The influence of two potential factors on the appreciation of dwelling aspects is examined: (1) preference and (2) experience. It was hypothesized that residents who live according to their preferences give higher appreciation scores than residents who do not. This should even apply to low-quality housing. Furthermore, it was argued that residents appreciate their current housing situation more than residents who do not live in that particular housing situation. This effect should be independent of preference. The impact of both preference and of experience could be confirmed. The results also showed an interaction effect between preference and experience: the positive effect of experience on appreciation is larger in residents who live in a housing situation that they do not prefer. This result would be expected if the impact of experience works to decrease the ‘gap’ in residential satisfaction due to the discrepancy between what residents have and what they want. In conclusion, why is housing always satisfactory? In this paper, housing is satisfactory because the ‘gap’ between what residents want and what they have is small; residents seem to have realistic aspirations. Furthermore, residents appreciate what they already have, even if this is not what they prefer.

Residents' perceptions of the most positive and negative aspects of the housing situation for people with psychiatric disabilities

“…The findings concur with those of previous studies , which showed that satisfaction with housing was closely associated with the physical environment. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that these aspects are similarly important and universally applicable for people in general . Thus, where environmental or physical aspects of the housing situation for this group are concerned, nursing staff and planners should not necessarily need to think in terms of special needs demanding special solutions but rather to reflect on the question ‘what are the best solutions?’ By considering this answer together with the response from the target group themselves, should provide sufficient guidance for nursing staff in their work to help and support people with psychiatric disabilities in improving their housing situation.…”

Environmental correlates of residential satisfaction: An exploration of mismatched neighborhood characteristics in the Twin Cities

“…Some studies find that residential satisfaction has small variations among residents living in different neighborhoods (McCrea et al, 2014;McCrea et al, 2005) and that residents are satisfied even when they live in poor conditions (Amérigo and Aragonés, 1990;Amos et al, 1982;Jansen, 2013). They argue that residents choose residential places that meet their needs (or preferences) the best and hence are satisfied (Amérigo and Aragonés, 1997;McCrea et al, 2014).…”

Satisfaction with Housing and Housing Support for People with Psychiatric Disabilities

“…Satisfaction with housing has also been shown in other populations to be influenced by underlying factors. For example, Jansen (2013) maintains, in a study of the general population, that there is a tendency for people to be satisfied with the housing situation they already have, due to them being used to it, even if it does not concur with their preferences.…”