Sociospatial perspective
Contents
Sociospatial perspective
Introduction
The sociospatial perspective assumes that “social space operates as both a product and a producer of changes in the metropolitan environment”[1]. In theoretical terms, this would be a “structuralist” approach following Flanagan’s (2010) classification.): “Once spatial patterns are altered in one region of the metropolis, this change affects all other parts not just of the metropolis, but also of other cities in the regional as well as national and even international hierarchy of urban regions.”[2] In the sociospatial perspective, built environment is intrinsically meaningful, it has its particular “semiotics”[3] that tell about policy, culture, society, economy, etc., and also about security.
Urban space and society interaction
On the bottom line, urban structure has an impact on social processes, and this needs to be addressed in strategic urban planning[4]. The school of “New Urbanism” has referred to this as the “sociospatial perspective”. This means that urban space and society interact, and that “social space operates as both a product and a producer of changes in the metropolitan environment” (Gottdiener/Hutchinson 2011: 394; see also 20)[5].
Urban design and citizen perception
For example, design features of urban infrastructure influence citizens’ perception of the risk that this infrastructure is at or that it is assumed to mitigate or prevent, as well as the general perception of criticality of that infrastructure.
Although urbanization studies strongly argue that differences between actual and perceived security are not influenced by the design of built environment but that they mainly are mass media constructs, they also assume that “the perception of (in)security in cities depends largely upon the substantial amount and constant flow of information that urban residents receive from many sources”[6], and this can be assumed to include the semiotics of built environment.
Many examples of community-enhancing constructions represent an “elitism of architectural choice”[7] that may in the end increase societal gaps and perceptions of fear, as well as actual insecurity. Cultural criminology supports this argument from the point of view of a critique of the approach of “designing-out” (crime and terrorism) through environmental design[8], as for example in the case of commercial malls based on architectures “to separate out different ‘types’ of people” and related risks[9].
Footnotes and references
- ↑ M. Gottdiener/R. Hutchison: The New Urban Sociology. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview.Gottdiener/Hutchinson, 2011, p. 394; see also p. 20.
- ↑ M. Gottdiener/R. Hutchison: The New Urban Sociology. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview.Gottdiener/Hutchinson, 2011, p. 394.
- ↑ M. Gottdiener/R. Hutchison: The New Urban Sociology. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview.Gottdiener/Hutchinson, 2011, p. 394.
- ↑ Hannigan, J. (1998): Fantasy City: Pleasure and Profit in the Postmodern Metropolis. Routledge: London.
- ↑ Gottdiener, M./Hutchison, R. (2011): The New Urban Sociology. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview.
- ↑ United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT): Enhancing urban safety and security. London: Earthscan, 2007, p. 19. Online: http://books.google.at/books?id=SmsbwAtSfE0C&pg=PA205&dq=legal+aspects+in+urban+planning+security&hl=de&ei=m-WzTu-tLMbQ4QST4vjQAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=legal%20aspects%20in%20urban%20planning%20security&f=false
- ↑ M. Gottdiener/R. Hutchison: The New Urban Sociology. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview.Gottdiener/Hutchinson, 2011, p. 331.
- ↑ E.g. S. Geason/P. R. Wilson: Designing out Crime. Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology, 1989. Online: http://www.aic.gov.au/documents/9/E/8/%7B9E810185-7D54-4480-8EEC-D92D84C3FB36%7Dcpted.pdf
- ↑ D. Garland: The Culture of Control: Crime and Social Order in Contemporary Society. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, p. 162.
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