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This paper examines the role of space (geographical location) in provincial income convergence and income distribution in Spain. To do that, and after showing the presence of spatial dependence in our income data, the paper compares two sample series: actual versus filtered (spaceless) data. The comparison of these two series comes out to two important differences: first, the speed of convergence is higher and, second, the income distribution is more concentrated (less biased) around the national average with filtered data. Besides this, the paper also shows that geographical location particularly explains relative income improvement in provinces with per capita income slightly above average. These results confirm that, as for Spain, space does indeed matter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the main factors behind the regional location of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Spain, at both the aggregate and sectoral levels, over the 1996‐2013 period. To do so, a panel spatial Durbin model, which allows us to unveil patterns of substitution or complementarity in FDI across regions, is estimated. Our findings reveal that inward FDI in one region is complementary to that in neighbouring regions, a conclusion that is consistent with a complex vertical FDI strategy. Besides, they tend to confirm the hypotheses that FDI exhibits some inertia and is attracted by regions with: (i) large market size; (ii) large surrounding‐market potential; and (iii) high levels of human capital and wages. However, the results cast some doubts on the role played by infrastructure, R&D and regional differences in taxes as key elements in attracting FDI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the existing literature on industrial location by discussing the territorial levels that are used in location analysis. We use data for new manufacturing firms and analyse the advantages and disadvantages of performing location analyses at three levels: municipality, county and travel-to-work areas. We show that location determinants vary according to the territorial level used in the analysis and conclude that the level at which the investigation is performed should be carefully selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the last two decades, many rural localities of Navarre (northern Spain) have experienced an increase of population related to the counterurbanisation phenomenon. This reflects the growing lure that rural localities have as residential environments for urban people, especially those coming from Pamplona, the county town of the region. Nevertheless, beyond this restructuring process, a plurality of profiles of migrants and reasons for moving to the country are found. This paper attempts to analyse this diversity through the analysis of the discourses of rural newcomers as expressed in diverse indepth interviews. Whereas most of the academic literature regarding counterurbanisation studies is based on conceptual categories defined prior to the encounter researcher/migrant, this paper explores the possibility of inverting the approach to the study of the phenomenon by considering the starting point as the lowest common denominator; how one experiences an urban-to-rural migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Spain is an ageing country, and the present demographic burden is not homogeneously distributed across space. Will the aged population be evenly distributed in the future, or will disparities broaden over time? Identifying the spatial patterns of the aged population concentration and the existence of a demographic burden convergence/divergence process is a pertinent question in Spain after the regional devolution the country has undergone in the last decades and the coexistence of different regimes. In this paper, we use a non‐parametric approach (geographically weighted regressions) to identify the determinants of the ageing dynamics, checking for the existence of a convergence/divergence ageing process after controlling for the socio‐economic characteristics of the Spanish municipalities. Although global estimations support the convergence hypotheses posed, GWR results show a significant variability of the effects depending on the area considered, which calls for a careful treatment of the results both for analysis and policy purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to analyse the influence of individual variables and some spatial mobility characteristics of regional labour markets on overeducation in Spain. To achieve this aim, we use microdata from the Spanish Budget Household Survey to estimate a probit model for the probability of overeducation while accounting for sample selection and the presence of data at different levels (individuals and territory). The obtained results permit us to conclude that the sizes of local labour markets and the possibility of extending the job search to other labour markets by commuting are relevant factors in explaining overeducation in the Spanish labour market. In spite of differences in labour market institutions, our results are very similar to those obtained for other countries, particularly when working with more recent data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This contribution examines the development of territorial dynamics on the Ceuta-Morocco border region in the context of the structural Spanish-Moroccan rebordering that followed Spain's EU entry. The evolution of border practice is canvassed through the confronting notions of territorial discontinuity and territorial continuity. Clearly, current territorial dynamics between Ceuta and Morocco are characterised by both the existence of conflictive geopolitical cross-border dialectics and the implementation of fortifying securitisation measures. However, simultaneously, the border region is also marked by intensifying patterns of cross-border interaction which are sourced in the rising potentialities of economic and urban cross-border co-operation. In this light, the paper seeks to map the present intertwining of these apparently disagreeing territorial trends. To conclude, the paper underlines the ongoing modification of relational power between Ceuta and Morocco. It depicts the strengthening of local cross-border co-operative practices as a potential tool to cope with persistent sovereignty disputes in the border region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globalisation and its consequent economic restructuring have implications at the local level. At the same time historical paths and traditions, embeddedness of local actors and institutional factors have all become significant in explaining different neighbourhood trajectories and, particularly, the patterns of urban segregation that emerge following economic restructuring. Given the unusual nature of the Spanish housing model and the massive arrival of immigrants since the end of the 1990s, this paper explores the urban effects of immigration settlement patterns in the context of a market dominated by owner-occupation and a unique framework of social housing policy. Purchase of permanent residences is an essential step in the housing careers of the Spanish population but also for immigrants to Spain. The paper analyses the extent to which this influences urban segregation patterns and neighbourhood characteristics in Spain. Barcelona is referred to as a case study, to illustrate the influence of the existing housing system in the process of the accommodation of newcomers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to connect two processes that have been analysed independently to date and that have characterised the housing experience of the Spanish population. On the one hand, the consequences induced by the high density of Spanish urban spaces on other spatial spheres of people's lives and on the other hand, the traditional presence and the recent expansion of second home possession. In this context, we will demonstrate that, in Spain, a strong statistical relationship has been established between the location of main dwellings in a very dense urban context and a greater probability of having second homes. This relationship is better known in the scientific literature as the ‘compensation hypothesis’. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between convergence in GDP per worker and the evolution of total factor productivity (TFP). Specifically, data envelopment analysis (DEA) is used to estimate TFP in the Spanish regions between 1964–91. As original contributions, public capital is included as a productive input, and different price indices are applied for each region, thus isolating any possible effect of price evolution on regional efficiency and convergence. Finally, the TFP indices are introduced into a neoclassical convergence equation. The findings show, in constrast to other studies, that convergence has taken place in TFP, though this process may have now run its course. It is also concluded that the convergence to be observed in labour productivity across the Spanish regions may be much more closely linked to catch-up in total factor productivity than to diminishing returns to productive factors, and that public capital has a relevant role as a production factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moroccans are the largest group of immigrants in Spain. Once they arrive at the new place, one of their first necessities is to access shelter. Focusing on the south-eastern region of Murcia in Spain and combining quantitative and qualitative data, I explore the process of housing market integration of Moroccan migrants. Special attention is paid to the dynamics of this process and the role that the interaction between the supply side and the foreign demand of accommodation plays. Thereby, I will emphasise how an unfavourable structure of the housing market, along with behaviour of local private landlords on the supply side leads to considerable problems concerning the housing market integration of migrants in Spain. Thus, this paper aims to give a more accurate interpretation of the dynamics influencing the housing outcomes of migrants in the studied area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a 'normal' housing market, one would expect that rising house prices go together with low vacancy rates and vice versa. However, in Spain, this has not been the case. Until very recently, Spain was characterised by strongly rising house prices as well as by a high rate of vacant dwellings. This is the Spanish paradox. This exploratory paper attempts to explain this paradox from a welfare regime perspective. The Spanish welfare and housing system has a number of specific characteristics, such as a political ideology and culture of homeownership, a history of strong rural to urban migration, a large role for the family, and a relatively strict rent regulation and tenant protection. The paper will show that all these characteristics contribute to the Spanish paradox. The paper will also indicate how the Spanish paradox relates to the speculative bubble in the Spanish property sector that has recently burst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical accounts of the development of a modern city have paid a great deal of attention to the evolution of the water supply and the sanitation systems while the recognition of water as an element of social power and political conflict remains less studied. This paper highlights the relationship between the water cycle and its management and social conflicts in the development of the city of Barcelona in the twentieth century. Necessities, perceptions, and visions of water have changed during the last century influenced by economic, political, social and environmental contexts, prompting a new water culture not free of contradictions. The Barcelona case also provides an opportunity to examine the discourses of public managers shifting from the supply-led strategies towards water-demand management approaches, the impact of the most polemical decisions related to water policy, and the vision of water as a source of social conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intended main output of this paper is a measurement of the dependence of the regional economy of Navarre (Northern Spain) on the Volkswagen plant producing the Polo model. Based on a field survey (qualitative interviews with 33 automotive suppliers) an exercise is developed to estimate the impact of the closure of the VW plant on regional employment. The degree of dependence on the Volkswagen plant found is lower than had been speculated: it is calculated that 7,222 direct and indirect jobs would be lost if the plant relocated. This study also casts doubt on the reliability of input-output tables in estimations such as the one proposed here. Finally, a comparison with other automotive assembly plants in Spain could be construed as evidence of convergence in the organisational models of the assembly plants on the ‘old periphery’ of Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the relationships between tourism and the agricultural production of traditional products, the latter having achieved new levels of appreciation in recent years as a result of quality designations. In this context, agro-food products can be considered as gastronomic tourism resources that enable tourism both to be developed and itself become a tool for promoting and commercialising quality agro-food products. These two circumstances merge around a single aim: the local development of areas traditionally regarded as marginal within the regional context. These facts are showed in the Catalan region of Priorat (Spain) where wines support the local development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the morphological adaptations of buildings that accompany retail modernisation within a series of villages and small towns in central Malaga province, Southern Spain. Indicators of morphological change are designed and an attempt is made to measure such change in the field. The relationships of morphological change to a range of socioeconomic data are explored. The statistical associations discovered are qualified in terms of possible underlying social and economic factors. The pattern of morphological change appears to be related to a process of hierarchical diffusion although a rudimentary type of retail establishment persists in centres of different types and sizes. It is argued that this survival owes more to social and cultural factors than to economic considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT To date, the evolution of residential segregation patterns in southern European cities has received little attention. The case of Barcelona metropolitan area (BMA) is particularly relevant following a rapid growth of immigrant population over a very short period. This empirical study seeks to see if this rapid growth has changed the spatial segregation patterns of immigrant groups and led to the emergence of ethnic enclaves. First, we calculate five indices according to the classic dimensions of residential segregation. Then, we use an adapted version of the Poulsen et al. typology in order to identify ethnic enclaves. In the period under study, there was a general increase in two dimensions: Exposure and clustering. There was a decline in evenness and concentration, and a variety of situations in terms of centralization. The evolution of the segregation indices indicates a diversity of segregation patterns: an increase of segregation according to exposure and clustering dimensions, a decline in evenness and concentration, and a variety of situations in terms of centralization. Finally, the findings confirm the presence of ethnic enclaves following seven years of growth in the immigrant population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article compares the housing allocation system in Netherlands with that of Ireland, Spain, Great Britain and Germany. An overview of the housing allocation policy in Netherlands is provided. A discussion of the housing allocation process under the distribution model and deft allocation model is presented. The composition of the housing stock in each of the countries is explained.