Page 40 - IJPS-8-2

International Journal of

Population Studies

RESEARCH ARTICLE
Used (Lived) versus Offered (Plain) densities of

human settlement in space: An instance of the
probabilistic consumption model

Fabien Leurent*

International Research Centre on Environment and Development (CIRED), Ecole des Ponts
ParisTech, France

Abstract

To people living in areas, the denser is the area, the more numerous are the opportunities
of interpersonal and social interaction, of employment and of amenities of all kinds. The
spatial density of human settlement is basically studied according to places, that is, area
weighted. The notion of population-weighted density, or lived density, puts human
density in the perspective of the people that experience it. Considering, respectively,
the land units and the people as statistical populations of their own, the article provides
a probabilistic model of human density in a geographical space, as a random variable
in each statistical population, with specific probability density functions (PDFs) and
cumulative distribution functions. The PDF of lived, “Used density” is derived from that
of the plain, “Offered density” through a consumption model: Thus, their relationship is
*Corresponding author: a specific instance of a well-established probabilistic model. The average used density
Fabien Leurent (fabien.leurent@ is systematically larger than its offered counterpart: The ratio amounts to one plus
enpc.fr) the squared coefficient of variation of offered density. The relation between the two
Citation: Leurent, F. (2022). Used statistical distributions is illustrated using a Lorenz curve; the associated Gini index
(Lived) versus Offered (Plain) constitutes an indicator of population heterogeneity in a geographical space. A case of
Densities of Human Settlement
in space: An instance of the France’s population as of 2019 is studied to demonstrate the methodology.
probabilistic consumption model.
International Journal of Population
Studies, 8(2):34-50. Keywords: Spatial heterogeneity; Density metrics; Land units; Consumption model;
https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.v8i2.297 Lorenz curve; Gini index
Received: May 23, 2022
Accepted: November 10, 2022
Published Online: November 30, 1. Introduction
2022
The spatial density of human settlements stands out as a prominent feature of
Copyright: © 2022 Author(s).
This is an Open Access article territories. Urban areas are endowed with high density of population and jobs: Typical
distributed under the terms of the urban residential densities range from 1000 inhabitants per square km to more than
Creative Commons Attribution 100,000 in the densest parts of some Asian megacities (e.g., Dhaka). Rural areas, in
License, permitting distribution,
and reproduction in any medium, contrast, exhibit sparse human settlements and low densities: Typical values of rural
provided the original work is density range from near zero to some hundred inhabitants per square km (Aliaga et al.,
properly cited. 2015; Vorobyev, 2019). Thus, density is a relevant indicator of urbanization, together
Publisher’s Note: AccScience with the overall area population which is the primary indicator of city size in human
Publishing remains neutral with geography. Spatial maps exhibiting zones colored according to their respective levels of
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional density make a basic tool to understand the spatial structure of territories (e.g., Dijkstra
affiliations. & Poelman, 2014).

Volume 8 Issue 2 (2022) 34 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.v8i2.297