Analysis of Spatial Imbalance Associated with Rural Settlements in Iran

Spatial distributions of rural settlements in Iran represent an imbalanced nature. The major objective of this study is to investigate the spatial patterns of Iranian rural settlements using certain indicators and indices .It further tries to propose a model regarding the analysis of spatial imbalances. This study further supported by application of modifiable areal unit problem(MAUP) suitable for aggregated data. It consists of both general as well as local scale pertaining to aggregation problem. Chosen area for the purpose of combination represent an arbitrary nature .However; areal units can be meaningful in displaying the same base level data. For the purpose of modeling and selection of basic unit, the hexagonal model long associated with geography is used. The spatial statistical methods were the global measure of Moran's I and Local Indicators of Spatial Association(LISA). While Moran's I provides information on the overall spatial distribution of the data, LISA provides information on types of spatial association at the local level. LISA statistics can also be used to identify influential locations in spatial association analysis. Spatial analysis can identify imbalances with respect to settlement distribution. This study suggests that different indices will hold different results regarding spatial rural imbalances.