Social aspects

In this Securipedia page, the focus is on the social functions of urban objects in an urban environment. In the graphic of the Securipedia overall structure, the assumption is depicted that (potential) measures that mitigate (potential) threats have impact on the social functions of urban objects, because of the consequences for the design and accessibility of the objects and the urban environment in general.

To be able to understand how current or future security measures have an effect on the social function we need first to know what is understood by social functions of urban object in particular and of the urban environment in general. Secondly, we need to know what the mechanisms are through which safety measurements effect, positively or negatively, the social functions.

Description

To understand the concept of social functions we need to keep in mind that mobility, economic and safety are of course also social in nature. But to facilitate sense making, we have distinguished social functions as a separate category, which will be described from a sociological and a psychological perspective.

General, sociological perspective

The social function of urban property, i.e. urban objects in urban environments, is illustrated by the phrase “The city is not a business, the city is for all”. In the social sciences, especially sociology, this view is known as functionalism. Functionalists see society, and hence urban environments, as made up of inter-dependent sections (objects) which work together to fulfill the functions necessary for the survival of society as a whole. People are socialized into roles and behaviours which fulfill the needs of society. Functionalists believe that behaviour in society is structural. They believe that rules and regulations help organize relationships between members of society. Values provide general guidelines for behaviour in terms of roles and norms. These institutions of society such as the family, the economy, the educational and political systems, are major aspects of the social structure. Institutions are made up of interconnected roles or inter-related norms. For example, inter-connected roles in the institution of the family are of wife, mother, husband, father, son and daughter.

Functionalists believe that one can compare society to a living organism, in that both a society and an organism are made up of interdependent working parts (organs) and systems that must function together in order for the greater body to function. Functionalist sociologists say that the different parts of society e.g. the family, education, religion, law and order, media etc. have to be seen in terms of the contribution that they make to the functioning of the whole of society. This ‘organic analogy’ sees the different parts of society working together to form a social system in the same way that the different parts of an organism form a cohesive functioning entity.

The theory is based around a number of key concepts. First, society is viewed as a system – a collection of interdependent parts, with a tendency toward equilibrium. Second, there are functional requirements that must be met in a society for its survival (such as reproduction of the population). Third, phenomena are seen to exist because they serve a function.

Entry points for social aspects in security-related urban planning

• Analytical perspectives
  • Ecological perspective
  • Sociospatial perspective
  • Environmental psychology
• Critical infrastructure: Types of impact of critical infrastructure failure on citizens and society
• Citizen acceptance aspects, including practical aspects of addressing them
  • Security as a public good
  • Citizen participation
  • Community safety approach
  • Cooperative Discourse
  • Social risk perception and communication of risk (risk perception mechanisms and parts of page on risk)
  • Failure of critical services: Societal aspects
  • Critical infrastructure: Types of impact of critical infrastructure failure on citizens and society
  • Perception of (in)security
  • Local open dialogue
  • Experimental participation method

Culture aspects

Design features of urban infrastructure influence citizens’ perception of the risk that infrastructure is at, or that it is assumed to mitigate or prevent. Design features also influence the general perception of criticality of that infrastructure. These two are important aspects of security culture. While urban sociology and socially concerned urban planning have gained much insight on environments such as pleasant calming or exciting secure environments have been addressed to a far lesser extent. But there are several further reasons why it is important to consider culture aspects in urban planning:

• First, culture determines the behaviour and perception of people and thus determines the (perceived) security.
• Second, cultural behaviour can be directed by the surroundings, and thus by the result of urban planning.
• Third, the framework for urban planning is also to some extent culturally determined: Different perceptions and disputes about risk and security can be linked to competing worldviews, as they are paramount in multicultural cities: Conceptions of risk, security and solutions to security problems vary according to the organisation of political and social relations.

Entry points for culture aspects in security-related urban planning

• Overview of culture aspects
• Security culture
  • Security culture
  • Methods to determine risk aspects of the public security culture
• Civic culture
• Community safety approach
• Cultural criminology
• Social risk perception and communication of risk (risk perception mechanisms and parts of page on risk)
• Ecological perspective
• Failure of critical services: Societal aspects
• Perception of (in)security and risks