[Neighborhood characteristics in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais State, Brazil: an intraurban analysis using systematic social observation method].

Abstract

Systematic social observation (SSO) is an objective method of measuring the neighborhood physical and social characteristics. This study aimed to build intraurban indicators using the SSO method and compare them between two slums and their surroundings in a Brazilian capital. The simple indicators were calculated using the ratio estimator method, and grouped into domains. The principal component analysis generated the composite indicators, with the number of components defined based on the percentages of the total variance explained, and subdomains created when two components represented the domain. Internal consistency was verified by Cronbach's alpha, and composite indicators were transformed into scales from 0 to 5. Comparisons between slums and surroundings were performed using the Mann-Whitney U test, considering a 5% significance level. We evaluated 373 street segments in 63 neighborhoods. For the streets, sidewalks, signage, and safety domains, higher medians were observed in the surrounding areas than in the slums. While for the domains of social interaction and problems in the neighborhood, the median was higher in the slums. The composite indicators have the potential to identify intraurban disparities within the city, and contribute to the implementation of urban transformations aimed at improving the residents' living and health conditions.