Quality of Life Evaluation in Czech Districts

Abstract

The article explores regional comparison of quality of life (QOL) in the Czech Republic (CR) districts. In the CR there are 77 districts. A district is a territorial unit mainly used for statistical reporting purposes. This territorial classification corresponds with Eurostat Local Administrative Unit level 1. A set of 32 indicators from economic, social and environmental areas was chosen for the measurement of QOL at the district level. The model was designed for the evaluation, comparison and explanation of regional differences in the QOL. Algorithms of hierarchical cluster analysis were applied for the whole set of objective indicators in the model. The results show that QOL on the district level is very similar across the CR; only the districts located in the highland areas in Sumava (mountains), Jeseniky (mountains) and Krusne hory (Krusne mountains) have lower level of QOL. On the other hand, the highest QOL is observed in the district Capital city of Prague as actually expected.