Unraveling the Variations of the Society of England and Wales through Diffusion Maps Analysis on Census 2011

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel diffusion maps methodology combined with a localization metric to analyze census data, revealing spatial patterns of inequality and minority group significance in England and Wales.

Contribution

The study develops a new analytical framework integrating diffusion maps and a localization metric to identify social and geographical clustering in census data.

Findings

Identified key hotspots of inequality and segregation.

Uncovered the importance of minority groups in London.

Demonstrated applicability to other spatial census data.

Abstract

We propose a new approach to identifying geographical clustering and hotspots of inequality from decadal census data. We use diffusion mapping to study the 181,408 Output Areas in England and Wales, which allows us to decompose the feature structures of countries in the census data space. Additionally, we develop a new localization metric inspired by statistical physics to uncover the importance of minority groups in London. The results of our study can be applied to other census-like data constructions that include spatial localization and differentiation from low degrees of freedom. This new approach can help us better understand the patterns of social deprivation and segregation across the country and aid in the development of policies to address these issues.