Spatial Inequality

A spatial differentiation of abundance of any measurable quality or characteristic. No geographical feature is evenly distributed across any landscape of the Earth except at a very small scale, so every spatial characteristic is marked by spatial inequality to some degree. Spatial inequality is primarily of concern to scholars who study the geography of economic development, and is related to the concept of segregation, a condition in which spatial inequality is established in an urban environment on the basis of race or other considerations and is reflected in the social distance between groups. Spatial inequality is often the motivating factor behind migration, because economic opportunity, wages, and amenities are never evenly distributed, and people tend to relocate to those places that offer the greatest advantages. Economic geographers may analyze and explain spatial inequality at any scale: global, regional, national, or local. World Systems Theory is an attempt to identify the factors and conditions that contribute to global spatial inequality of income and wealth. At the regional and national scales, concepts of core and periphery are sometimes employed to explain the presence and effects of spatial inequality. Many countries possess an economic core region that is characterized by an underdeveloped hinterland, resulting in an unequal distribution of economic development, income, and standards of living.

The spatial inequality of wealth and income are of interest because other spatial inequalities are often connected to this specific pattern of inequality. For instance, the spatial distribution of the quality or accessibility of health care in many countries is directly correlated with levels of personal or family income. Infant mortality rates, longevity, and other factors influencing the quality of life are also typically geographically associated with the spatial characteristics of monetary income. If it is assumed that such inequality is an undesirable geographic pattern, then a comparative, reasonably precise means of measuring such disparity is useful, as countries and regions may then be evaluated relative to one another. A common method used to accomplish this is the Gini coefficient. The Gini coefficient is a mathematical index that ranges between a hypothetical value of zero to a maximum of one. A Gini coefficient of zero indicates a situation in which there is complete equality, in other words all individuals or family units receive exactly the same level of income or wealth. A coefficient of one indicates that all wealth is concentrated with one person or household, with all others receiving nothing, resulting in the maximum degree of inequality. Frequently, the coefficient is multiplied by 100 for reporting purposes, as this produces whole integers and is somewhat easier to use when making comparisons. In this system the maximum coefficient is 100, while the minimum remains zero. In reality, for countries the range of Gini coefficients is between 20, signifying low spatial inequality of income, to around 70, indicating a relatively large inequality. As a general rule, developing countries tend to have the largest Gini coefficients.