Nessa Winston | University College Dublin (original) (raw)

Papers by Nessa Winston

Policy Press eBooks, Apr 3, 2019

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, Aug 12, 2015

Much of the literature on sustainable communities and compact cities calls for higher density hou... more Much of the literature on sustainable communities and compact cities calls for higher density housing including multifamily dwellings. Some case studies suggest problems with such dwellings. However, rigorous comparative research on this topic has not been conducted to date. This paper draws on a high quality, comparative dataset, the European Social Survey, to analyse a) the quality of multifamily dwellings in European urban areas, b) the characteristics of residents of these dwellings, c) their life satisfaction compared with those living in detached housing and d) the relative importance of built form in explaining life satisfaction. One of the main findings from the multivariate analyses is that built form, including residing in multifamily housing, is not a statistically significant predictor of life satisfaction when you control for standard predictors of life satisfaction (e.g. health, employment and income) and housing and neighbourhood quality.

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, Mar 1, 2013

Journal of International Development

Absolute Poverty in Europe

This chapter examines the housing situation of households who may be considered to live in absolu... more This chapter examines the housing situation of households who may be considered to live in absolute poverty in the EU. As poverty is multidimensional, those living on inadequate incomes are likely to be deprived in a variety of ways relating to housing. Using the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions, the first part of the chapter assesses the extent to which such households experience housing problems such as overcrowding and sub-standard dwelling quality. It also explores some housing-related risks they face, specifically burdensome housing costs and rent/mortgage arrears. These risks significantly increase their probability of becoming homeless. In addition, people experiencing these problems are likely to have periodic and/or on-going challenges paying for other essential goods, such as food and energy. Given the limitations of household surveys in capturing information on certain groups living in ‘extreme poverty’, the chapter also presents a case study of one group which experiences extreme housing exclusion in a relatively wealthy European society – the Roma in Ireland. The case study draws on data from a national needs assessment of Roma and highlights the specific challenges faced by this particularly vulnerable group.

Severe housing deprivation is an important element of social sustainability. Social sustainabilit... more Severe housing deprivation is an important element of social sustainability. Social sustainability has been described as a concept in ‘chaos’ and of limited utility. This paper argues that meeting basic human needs is central to social sustainability and housing is a key dimension of need. It examines severe housing deprivation by analysing the extent to which households living in extreme poverty experience problems such as overcrowding, sub-standard dwelling quality and housing-related risks such as unaffordable housing and rent/mortgage arrears. The paper draws on data from the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions for this purpose. However, household surveys are somewhat limited in the extent to which they capture some groups living in ‘extreme poverty’. Therefore, we supplement these data with a case study of a particularly vulnerable group who experience housing exclusion in several relatively wealthy European countries - Roma in Ireland. The paper concludes with a discussi...

Other funder'IRCHSS Awards' - Scheme 4: Research Fellowship 2007Author has checked copyri... more Other funder'IRCHSS Awards' - Scheme 4: Research Fellowship 2007Author has checked copyright18/10/201

Despite net in-migration to Ireland in the last years of the twentieth century, large numbers of ... more Despite net in-migration to Ireland in the last years of the twentieth century, large numbers of Irish people continued to leave the country on an annual basis (29,000 is the estimate for 1999). Their primary destination was England where, according to the last British Census (1991), the Irish are the largest ethnic minority in England. This report reveals the findings of a case study of Irish emigrants living in England, drawing on data from a variety of sources including the British census, surveys, focus groups and interviews with employees of Irish agencies in England. The research was conducted by Dr. Nessa Winston of the Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University College Dublin for the Irish National Committee of the European Cultural Foundation.11/11/2013. SB

Young People and Housing, 2012

GINI Country Reports, 2013

Income inequality began to increase back in the 1980s, with the Gini index reaching 0.24 in 1987.... more Income inequality began to increase back in the 1980s, with the Gini index reaching 0.24 in 1987. There was a marked increase in inequality during the early years of transition, and the Gini index reached 0.30 in 1995. Changes in inequality were smaller in the period 1995–2005, the overall pattern being stagnation until the economic crisis broke. The changes in inequality can be separated into various periods. The first, the early 1990s, was characterized by rapid and profound changes in the structure of the economy. Hungary’s trade with her eastern neighbours collapsed, and socialist mega-enterprises went bankrupt and were dismantled. This period was characterized by a massive decline in employment and a fall in the country’s GDP between 1990 and 1993. Between 1995 and 2006, GDP grew at around 4 per cent annually. Foreign direct investment played a major role in kick-starting and accelerating this growth, which brought about a significant technological modernization of production p...