Towards a dual city? suburbanization and centralization in spain's largest cities

Abstract

Large cities and metropolitan areas are being transformed by different migratory and economic processes and also, in a relevant way, by residential mobility. This study focuses on the latter, analyzing profiles of the participants in centralization and suburbanization movements in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville and Bilbao, based on data from the 2011 census. Using binomial logistic regression models, we have measured a greater tendency to seek out urban centers of middle classes, educated population and people living in non-traditional households. At the same time, there is a growing suburbanization of young, working-class people involved in family projects. The combination of both movements (which could be individually seen as examples of social mix) is causing an increase in urban segregation, now on a metropolitan scale.