Household crowding

Definition

The proportion of young people aged 15 to 24 living in crowded housing (requiring one or more additional bedrooms as defined by the Canadian National Occupancy Standard).(1)

Relevance

Adequate space for individual household members is a key component of quality of life.

New Zealand research has found a strong association between household crowding and the prevalence of certain infectious diseases such as meningococcal disease, acute rheumatic fever and tuberculosis.

Crowding is also associated with other measures of socioeconomic deprivation such as low income, unemployment, low levels of educational attainment and fewer material resources such as cars and telephones.

International research has found an association between residential crowding and psychological distress.(2)

Current level and trends

In 2006, around 17 percent of young people aged 15 to 24 (about 89,000 individuals) lived in households requiring one or more additional bedrooms. 

This is lower than the levels of the 1980s and early 1990s, but slightly higher than the levels in 1996 and 2001.

Proportion of young people aged 15 to 24 living in households requiring one or more additional bedrooms, 1986-2006

Proportion of young people aged 15 to 24 living in households requiring one or more additional bedrooms, 1986-2006

Source: Statistics New Zealand, Census.

Notes

1. For more information about the measurement criteria of Canadian National Occupancy Standards, see the Methodology report.

2. Evans, G. (2003) “The Built Environment and Mental Health”, in Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, 80:4. Accessed 10 August 2008 (http://cmbi.bjmu.edu.cn/news/report/2004/Urban/view/31.pdf).