Modeling the Neighborhood Wellbeing of Townships in South Africa

Alireza Moghayedi (), Abid Mehmood, Kathy Michell and Christiana Okobi Ekpo
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Alireza Moghayedi: Department of Architecture and Environment, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK
Abid Mehmood: School of Geography and Planning, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF10 3WA, UK
Kathy Michell: Department of Construction Economics and Management, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Christiana Okobi Ekpo: Department of Construction Economics and Management, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 11, 1-21

Abstract: Townships in South Africa are characterized by underdeveloped urban neighborhoods on the periphery of cities, where their inhabitants suffer from a poor quality of life. Given the relative lack of empirical research on the wellbeing of people living in townships in South Africa, this study attempts to fill the gap by understanding and modeling the relationships between household socioeconomic characteristics, housing and neighborhood conditions, and individual and community wellbeing to develop and empirically validate a neighborhood wellbeing framework. The hypothesized associations from the wellbeing framework were tested using 389 household interviews of the three largest townships in South Africa. The findings identify the challenges associated with adequate housing and lack of infrastructure in townships and how these affect the wellbeing of individuals and communities. The conclusion demonstrates how the neighborhood wellbeing framework, as an interdisciplinary approach, can improve the quality of life of inhabitants and communities in urban neighborhoods in general.

Keywords: housing; neighborhood; township; socioeconomic; wellbeing; South Africa; resilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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