Multidimensional deprivation in contemporary Switzerland across social groups and time

We have investigated the phenomenon of deprivation in contemporary Switzerland through the adoption of a multidimensional, dynamic approach. By applying Self Organizing Maps (SOM) to a set of 33 non-monetary indicators from the 2009 wave of the Swiss Household Panel (SHP), we identified 13 prototypical forms (or clusters) of well-being and deprivation within a topological, two-dimensional space. Then new data from the previous waves (2003 to 2008) were classified by the SOM model trained with the data of wave 2009, making it possible to estimate the weight of the different clusters in time and reconstruct the dynamics of stability and mobility of individuals within the two-dimensional output space. During the period from 2003 to 2009, the size of the clusters remained basically unchanged. Looking at the transition matrices between year t and year t+1, we observed a high mobility among the adjacent multidimensional forms compared to those which are more distant, a sign that well-being and deprivation in contemporary Switzerland show certain stability over time.