Spatial Clustering Phenomena of the Non-Native Resident Population in Italy

1 Introduction

The profound economic, social and cultural transformations that have taken place in recent years have placed the question of immigration at the centre of extensive scientific debate. Such phenomena involve the overcoming of territorial boundaries and affect mobility within EU countries and between both EU and non-EU countries (so-called third countries). The same phenomena are growing constantly and rapidly, to the extent that the number and variety of recipient countries and societies of origin and, therefore, the resulting increase in annexed linguistic, ethnic and cultural heterogeneity, has produced a “globalization” of immigration.

Immigration policies are principally aimed at responding to the numbers of non-native residents within a territory and their access to services and rights. Likewise, integration policies have been developed in this context, principally aimed towards three broad areas: the economic (labour market integration and systems of protection) the socio-cultural environment (access to education and skills for social integration) and the political-legal (legal status and access to rights). Such policies differ according to the territory in question and are in any case highly influenced by existing legal frameworks, the productive system and immigration trends already present within a territory as well as within the EU itself. Italy presents a model of diffusion, evenly distributed throughout the country to a greater or lesser extent, with some regional variations in the various Italian provinces (Caritas Migrantes, 2009).

The present work aims to verify the effective presence of legalized non-native residents in Italy, analysing economic systems at a provincial level and comparing the occupational status of both native and non-native residents. This objective is achieved, moreover, through the use of territorial cluster methods aimed at the aggregation of geographically contiguous units of space, through the imposition of limits on the number of units making up each cluster (Patil & Taillie, 2004; Kulldorff & Nagarwalla, 1995).