How good is good: Residents' satisfaction with low-income housing in India.

This research explores the conceptual overlap between environmental cognition and environmental evaluation through an examination of residential satisfaction. The setting for the examination was Mogappair, a low income housing project located in Madras, India. Based on economic criteria, Mogappair is considered a success and a prototype for affordable housing in the developing world. This study argues that in addition to economic criteria, residential satisfaction is a robust indicator of the success of low income housing developments. Residents use an array of reference points or standards when assessing various attributes of their housing. These standards are an outcome of their past housing experiences and expectations for the future. Previous as well as present housing are components of residents' experiences, and the ideal house is a component of their future expectations. Therefore, residential quality is a composite of residents' satisfaction with the neighborhood, the services, and their dwellings, all of which are influenced by their housing related experiences and expectations. Face-to-face interviews, using a standardized questionnaire were conducted in 1993 with 211 residents. In-depth interviews were conducted with a subsample of 40 respondents. As part of the in-depth interviews, respondents sketched their past, present, and ideal houses. The survey data were analyzed using descriptive, bi-variate (ANOVA), and multi-variate (MCA) statistical techniques. Qualitative data from the in-depth interviews and the sketches were content analyzed. The findings indicate that a majority of the residents are satisfied with their dwellings and with the neighborhood. However, many are dissatisfied with services, thereby challenging a guiding tenet of the sites and services approach used in Mogappair. The data also suggest that design participation is effective only when backed by relevant information regarding space planning, construction, and building materials. This study demonstrates the importance of residents' housing experiences and expectations in influencing their assessments of their present housing. Specifically, residents are more satisfied with their present housing when (i) differences between present housing and previous housing are positive, and (ii) when present housing is more comparable to ideal housing. Based on the above findings, potential policy implications are also identified.PhDArchitectureCommunication and the ArtsPublic policySocial SciencesUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/129302/2/9423295.pd