Abstract
The purpose of this research was to determine the differences in age structure and aging process among detached residential estates developed in the 1960s in the city of Sendai, Japan, and to identify the elements affecting the differences.
In 1975, there were differences among the estates in terms of population composition by 5-year age-groups. In this research, these 24 estates were classified into three types by age structure in 1975 through cluster analysis: residential estates dominated by the first and second generations (type 1); residential estates with a nonbiased age structure (type 2); and residential estates with more young people around 20 years old (type 3). Analysis of variance showed that the differences in age structure were closely related to the attributes of the estates, particularly the distance from Sendai station.
From 1975 to 2005, type 1 estates experience rapid aging of the population as the first generation grew older and the second generation moved out, and therefore it recorded the highest ratio of the elderly as well as the highest average age of residents. These estates are generally located relatively far from Sendai station in general and received fewer recent migrants, resulting in a considerable population decrease. Meanwhile, the estates within a short distance from Sendai station experienced a noticeable inflow of young people and did not necessarily undergo a very rapid aging.
