Exploring stigma experiences of scattered-site public housing residents and its characteristics based on social contact theory

Governments worldwide have been striving to efficiently manage public rental housing. However, the stigma associated with public rental housing persists as a significant challenge. In response, the scattered-site public housing strategy has been introduced as an alternative to traditional large-scale rental housing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of this strategy in reducing the stigma within Seoul metropolitan city. The empirical analysis utilized 2019 Seoul Public Housing Occupant data and a binary logistic regression model. The main findings indicate that residents of scattered-site public housing experience significantly lower levels of stigmatization compared to residents of other public housing types. Notably, the stigmatization experienced by scattered-site public housing residents is lower not only compared to independent public housing residents but also to those in socially mixed public housing, which is typically advantageous for reducing stigmatization. This suggests that residents of scattered-site public housing are statistically more free from both external and internal stigmatization. In addition, a unique characteristic found only in scattered-site public housing is that as residents form closer relationships with their neighbors, they experience more stigmatization. This implies that as scattered-site public housing residents form closer relationships with their neighbors, their identity as public housing residents can become exposed, potentially leading to increased stigmatization.