Changes in Occupational Structure and Residential Segregation in Tokyo

Abstract

Similar to other industrialized countries, Japan has experienced a growth in income inequality since the 1980s. Furthermore, in the past few decades, Tokyo has come to adopt a more liberalist position for not only welfare and housing policy of the state but also to urban policy. This chapter examines the changes in socio-spatial inequality in Tokyo from 2000 to 2015. During this period, segregation indices confirm some level of residential separation between the top and bottom occupational groups, and segregation is fairly stable over time. This suggests that certain factors counteract the increase of residential segregation. A comparison between the Tokyo Metropolitan Region and the core city reveals that the core city amplifies spatial inequality. In contrast to the limited change in the city-wide levels of segregation, the changes in the residential patterns show that people with high occupational status tend to concentrate around the main railway station in suburban areas in the region and inside the core city, especially adjacent to the central neighborhoods.