Regional Formation and Development Studies

In the article, the author empirically approbates the structural scheme for the evaluation of the territorial state of development elaborated previously assessing territorial state of development of the statistical regions of Latvia. The scheme comprises four objective social economic elements and two subjective elements. The average values of normalized objective and subjective indicators for each region were calculated applying the most appropriate indicator of the statistical regions available in the national statistical database of Latvia to the each element of the scheme and normalizing the values of the selected indicators. Allocation of the statistical regions of Latvia in accordance with the normalized objective and subjective indicators was performed using the W. Zapf’s matrix, which provides a possibility to consider the territorial state of development not just in a quantitative but as well in a qualitative aspect, i.e., within the framework of the pluralistic territorial development paradigm suggesting a parallel existence of diverse development natures (qualities) in the global environment instead of applying a single quantitative scale to all territories being studied. In the result of the approbation of the structural scheme for the territorial state of development evaluation, it is not possible to single out a distinct statistical region of Latvia in accordance with its highest or lowest development level, rather it could be merely stated that each of the regions is developed in a different quality since each region has its own nature of development.