Measuring the Satisfaction of Residents of Informal Settlements with Social Development Indicators, Case Study: Hamedan City

Abstract
After several decades of planning to improve the quality of life of citizens, a significant share of city residents is still unable to meet their needs. Meanwhile, informal settlements can be considered as a clear example of environments with a low level of social development, whose residents face many problems and limitations. Therefore, in this research, the indicators of social development have been questioned through a questionnaire from the residents of five informal settlements in Hamedan city. The investigated variables are categorized into five factors “social interactions”, “economic power”, “local services”, “service distribution” and “citizenship right” with the help of factor analysis model. Also, the evaluation of factor scores in the investigated neighborhoods shows that the arrangement of the neighborhoods was based on the level of satisfaction of the residents with social development, including Manochehri, Mazdaghine, Khezr, Hesar, and Dizaj. In the following, with the help of the linear multivariate regression analysis model, the weight of the five factors in realizing satisfaction with social development has been calculated, and the economic power factor with a weight of 0.429 shows the greatest impact. The research results show that the first priority of social development is related to the “service distribution” factor in all neighborhoods. Next, the priority of social development for Hesar and Dizaj neighborhoods is related to the “economic ability” factor, for Khezr and Mazdaghine neighborhoods, it is related to the “citizenship right” factor, and for Manochehri neighborhood, it is related to the “local services” factor. Therefore, the main strategy that can be placed on the agenda of urban managers will be to create balance and justice in the distribution of services and infrastructures in Hamedan city.
Keywords: Informal Settlement, Social Development, Quality of Life, Residents’ Satisfaction, Hamedan.
 
1. Introduction
The concept of development has evolved over the past two centuries through six major stages: economic growth in the 1950s and 1960s, poverty reduction in the 1970s, sustainable development in the 1980s, human development in the 1990s, and Millennium development goals at the beginning of the 21st century and sustainable development goals in 2015 (Adam Mohamed et al., 2019). Despite the considerable scientific and political attention to the broad concepts of sustainable development, it is felt that the “social” dimension has been neglected and it does not seem to be as important as the economic or environmental aspects of sustainable development. In social development studies only a few concepts have been considered such as social justice, social welfare, human services, social infrastructure, and social capital (Cuthill, 2010: 362-363; Luqman et al., 2017). Meanwhile, one of the important issues of urban resilience is addressing its social dimension (Moussovian et al., 2018).
In the present research, the evaluation of citizens’ satisfaction has been considered with the indicators of social development in informal settlements. Informal settlements have failed to develop due to special economic, social and physical conditions. These settlements, which have been formed in the lower areas of big cities due to the migration or displacement of the low-income population, are facing many challenges. These are also facing other areas of the city with crises and social damage. Therefore, in this research, by selecting five informal settlements in Hamedan city, an effort has been made to identify the strategies for improving the social development of these settlements, and to determine priority measures. Therefore, in this research, by selecting five informal settlements in the city of Hamedan, it has been tried to determine the ways to improve their social development.
 
2. Materials and Methods
The current research is done with descriptive-analytical method based on documentary studies and field observation. The theoretical foundations of the research were obtained through library studies and the indicators of the subject were extracted in a documented table. In the next step, indices were questioned in the case studies and were analyzed using the factor analysis method and multivariate regression.
In this research, the statistical population includes all residents of neighborhoods who have a history of neighborhood for at least five years. The sample size (number of questionnaires) is considered to be 150 (about 6 times the number of indicators) in order to be valid for SPSS software analysis. Therefore, for each neighborhood, 30 samples were selected by a simple random method. Next, the data was entered into SPSS software and the main factors affecting social development were extracted with the help of exploratory factor analysis model. In the next step, the score of the samples in each factor is calculated, which indicates the action priorities for them. At the end, in order to calculate the weight of different factors and the final score of each neighborhood, linear multivariate regression analysis has been used.
 
3. Discussion
After extracting the information from the questionnaires and entering them into the SPSS software, the initial information matrix was formed. The output of the data validation tests shows the suitability of the data for analysis (Alpha Cronbach = 0.840, Kaiser meyer olkin = 0.761, chi-square =1207, Sig. = 0.000).
After the control and appropriateness of the statistical tests, the preliminary matrix is calculated. This matrix clearly specifies that the process of factor analysis in reducing and summarizing social development indicators and measures has led to several final factors. In the following, the factor matrix was rotated so that each of the relevant indicators get the most relationship with the 5 factors and facilitate the conditions for naming and identifying the factors.
The first factor consists of: Participation and voluntary activities, participation of women, social communication, cleanliness and health of the environment, and leisure time. This factor is named “Social interactions”.
The second factor includes: income and expenses, employment and job opportunities, knowledge and skills, security, desirable housing, proper nutrition, and the status of women. This factor is named “Economic power”.
The third factor includes: public transportation, educational facilities, medical-health services, and environmental safety. This factor is named “Local services”.
The fourth factor consists of: sense of belonging, political participation, and right to choose. This factor could be named “Right of citizenship”.
The fifth factor includes: access to municipal services, social justice, and class gap. This factor is named “Service distribution”.
Finally, in order to determine the relationship between the factors and the level of social development of the neighborhoods, by using linear multivariate regression analysis, the beta coefficient for the factors is determined. Accordingly, the highest beta coefficient is related to the second (0.429), first (0.403), third (0.327), fifth (0.219) and fourth (0.133) factors, respectively. Finally, the final score of the social development in each neighborhood is determined by multiplying the “score of each neighborhood for each factor” by the “beta coefficient of the factor”.
The final score of Hesar, Khezr, Dizaj, Mazdaghine, and Manochehri is calculated 1.87, 2.12, 1.57, 2.21, and 2.51, respectively. As can be seen, Manochehri neighborhood has a significant advantage over the other four neighborhoods.

4. Conclusion
Despite the passing of several decades of planning history in Iran, which has been carried out with the aim of improving the quality of life and the level of social development of the people, there are still deficiencies in this area, especially for the weaker sections of the society. Meanwhile, informal settlements can be considered as a clear example of environments with a low level of social development, whose residents face many problems and limitations. Therefore, in order to realize social development in these areas, it is necessary to determine the priorities for improving the conditions in them in the first step. Therefore, in the current research, this issue has been investigated by studying five informal settlements in Hamedan city.
The most important results of this research can be summarized in the following cases:
- The “service distribution” factor is the main priority for promoting social development in informal settlements in Hamedan. In this factor, there are three key variables: “social justice”, “social class difference” and “access to urban services”, which are among the primary priorities according to the analysis of the opinions of the residents of these neighborhoods.
- The “social interactions” factor in informal settlements has a better status than other factors of social development. In fact, although “participation and voluntary activities”, “social relations”, “women’s participation”, “leisure time” and “cleanliness and health of the environment” are far from the ideal conditions, but they are not prioritized.