Modeling the Determinants of Urban Fragmentation and Compaction Phenomena in the Province of Matera (Basilicata Region - Italy)

The main objective of the present study was to integrate a logistic regression (LR) model and a geographic information system (GIS) technique to analyze the urban transformations patterns and investigate the relationship between urban transformation dynamics and its various determinant forces. The case study concerns the territory of the province of Matera, in the region of Basilicata (southern Italy) where the main transformation phenomenon corresponds to the dynamics of urban sprinkling. The definition of the variables, corresponding to the dynamics of urban fragmentation and compaction, will be carried out through spatial analyses concerning the temporal variation of the sprinkling index. The relationships between the dependent variables (Y) fragmentation and compaction and the independent variables (X) referring to different factors will be analyzed through two logistic regressions. The time interval considered is 1998-2013 and the determining factors (driving forces) refer to physical characteristics, proximity analysis to roads or cities, socioeconomic factors and land use policies. The results consist of two maps showing the probability of variation of the dependent variables whose accuracy will be evaluated using the Relative Operational Characteristic Index (ROC).