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. 2015 Mar;51(2):205-238.
doi: 10.1177/1078087414527080.

Distress in the Desert: Neighborhood Disorder, Resident Satisfaction, and Quality of Life during the Las Vegas Foreclosure Crisis

Christie D Batson  1 , Shannon M Monnat  2
Affiliations

Distress in the Desert: Neighborhood Disorder, Resident Satisfaction, and Quality of Life during the Las Vegas Foreclosure Crisis

Christie D Batson et al. Urban Aff Rev Thousand Oaks Calif. 2015 Mar.

Abstract

Using surveys collected from a sample of households nested within 'naturally occurring' neighborhoods in Las Vegas, NV during the 2007-2009 economic recession, this study examines the associations between real and perceived measures of neighborhood distress (foreclosure rate, physical decay, crime) and residents' reports of neighborhood quality of life and neighborhood satisfaction. Consistent with social disorganization theory, both real and perceived measures of neighborhood disorder were negatively associated with quality of life and neighborhood satisfaction. Residents' perceptions of neighborliness partially acted as a buffer against the effects of neighborhood distress, including housing foreclosures, on quality of life and neighborhood satisfaction.

Keywords: disorder; foreclosures; neighborhood satisfaction; neighborhoods; quality of life.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. The Relationship between Foreclosure Rate and Neighborhood Quality of Life
Note: Represents 643 households within 22 neighborhoods in Las Vegas, 2009
Figure 2
Figure 2. The Relationship between Foreclosure Rate and Neighborhood Satisfaction
Note: Represents 643 households within 22 neighborhoods in Las Vegas, 2009
Figure 3
Figure 3. The Relationship between Perceptions of Physical Decay and Quality of Life
Figure 4
Figure 4. The Relationship between Perceptions of Physical Decay and Neighborhood Satisfaction
Figure 5
Figure 5. Quality of Life by Perceptions of Crime
Figure 6
Figure 6. Neighborhood Satisfaction by Perceptions of Crime
Note: Represents 643 households within 22 neighborhoods in Las Vegas, 2009
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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