YOUNG PEOPLE AND HOUSING IN EUROPE: DIMENSIONS AND DYNAMICS OF INEQUALITY
type: CreativeWork
description: Housing plays a central role in the allocation of social resources and it is a key component of overall social stratification. Since the last decades of the 20th century, the increasing commodification, deregulation and financialisation of housing in Europe has had significant consequences. These include not only the restructuring of housing tenure systems, but also the reshaping of social relations and patterns of inequality, particularly among young adults. They have been identified as having the most concerning position within the housing domain in terms of their ability to achieve housing independence as well as in terms of the fragmentation and reversibility of their housing outcomes and living arrangements. In particular, the impact of rising housing costs and social insecurity has forced young adults to adapt their housing needs, experiences and trajectories to address the growing differentiation and stratification within housing market. This is relevant because access to housing is crucial for achieving individual independence and an acceptable level of well-being, and it should be accessible to all. Housing is not only a material shelter (house), but also a symbolic place (home) for its inhabitants - a site of social reproduction that provides safety and ontological security. Moreover, young adults' ability to access and navigate the housing market is highly context dependent. The degree of social inequality in housing is influenced by the social and economic configuration of housing within each institutional context. Therefore, using a stratification analysis perspective, this thesis examines the extent to which contemporary housing tenure systems and housing market dynamics influence social inequality in both the achievement of housing independence and the configuration of housing outcomes for young adults in Europe. It also considers the role of housing contexts and policies that (in)directly affect young adults' constraints, opportunities and perception…
abstract: Housing plays a central role in the allocation of social resources and it is a key component of overall social stratification. Since the last decades of the 20th century, the increasing commodification, deregulation and financialisation of housing in Europe has had significant consequences. These include not only the restructuring of housing tenure systems, but also the reshaping of social relations and patterns of inequality, particularly among young adults. They have been identified as having the most concerning position within the housing domain in terms of their ability to achieve housing independence as well as in terms of the fragmentation and reversibility of their housing outcomes and living arrangements. In particular, the impact of rising housing costs and social insecurity has forced young adults to adapt their housing needs, experiences and trajectories to address the growing differentiation and stratification within housing market. This is relevant because access to housing is crucial for achieving individual independence and an acceptable level of well-being, and it should be accessible to all. Housing is not only a material shelter (house), but also a symbolic place (home) for its inhabitants - a site of social reproduction that provides safety and ontological security. Moreover, young adults' ability to access and navigate the housing market is highly context dependent. The degree of social inequality in housing is influenced by the social and economic configuration of housing within each institutional context. Therefore, using a stratification analysis perspective, this thesis examines the extent to which contemporary housing tenure systems and housing market dynamics influence social inequality in both the achievement of housing independence and the configuration of housing outcomes for young adults in Europe. It also considers the role of housing contexts and policies that (in)directly affect young adults' constraints, opportunities and perception…
author: TUCCI, VIOLETTA
language: eng
keywords: housing inequality, young people, Europe, Settore SPS/07 - Sociologia Generale, Settore SPS/09 - Sociologia dei Processi economici e del Lavoro
date published: 2024-06-04
date modified: 2026-07-27T20:18:48Z
provider: Università degli Studi di Milano
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Università degli Studi di Milano

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/1052209

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.13130/tucci-violetta_phd2024-06-04