Understanding Heterogeneity in Adaptation to Intermittent Water Supply: Clustering Household Types in Amman, Jordan

More than a billion people around the world experience intermittence in their water supply, posing challenges for urban households in Global South cities. An intermittent water supply (IWS) system prompts water users to adapt to service deficits which entails coping costs. Adaptation and its impacts can vary between households within the same city, leading to intra-urban inequality. Studies on household adaptation to IWS through survey data are limited to exploring income-based heterogeneity and do not account for the multidimensional and non-linear nature of the data. There is a need for a standardized methodology for understanding household responses to IWS that acknowledges the heterogeneity of households characterized by sets of multiple underlying factors and that is applicable across different settings. Here, we develop an analysis pipeline that applies hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) in combination with the Welch-two-sample t-test on household survey data from Amman, Jordan. We identify three clusters of households distinguished by a set of characteristics including income, water social network, supply duration, relocation and water quality problems and identify their group-specific adaptive strategies such as contacting the utility or accessing an alternate water source. This study uncovers the unequal nature of IWS adaptation in Amman, giving insights into the link between household characteristics and adaptive behaviors, while proposing a standardized method to reveal relevant heterogeneity in households adapting to IWS.