URBAN STUDIES
Year:2012 | Volume:2 | Issue:2|Papers Count:8

The dominance of technologic and physical-oriented planning of cities like the comprehensive (or master) plan and the detailed plan, and not paying enough attention to or neglecting social dimensions of urban planning, necessitates, more than ever before the consideration of urban social system. Social capital, as a representation of social synergy, has been recognized as an influential factor affecting the urban physical space. Identifying and measuring different dimensions of social capital in varying urban neighborhoods will help us be knowledgeable of the differences that exist in these areas and further assist us in coming up with the appropriate plans for these areas. This study aims to measure and compare the level of social capital and its dimensions (social knowledge, civic participation, social trust, and social solidarity) in three parts (old-context, new-context, and the informal-residence areas or shanty towns) of the city of Kermanshah. This is a survey research that utilized a questionnaire to collect needed data. Research results showed that informal residences and old-context areas, despite their many problems and difficulties, did in fact have more social capital, especially bonding social capital, than the new-context areas. This indicates that there are great potentials in these areas that if utilized appropriately, can enhance life greatly in these areas.

This article aims to build a measurement construct for “Neighborhood Identity” and calculate its validity and reliability through factor analysis. Studying factors that affect how a person identifies with his/her place of residence can be effective in solving the problem of identity crisis that is a major problem of contemporary society. A person living in a neighborhood in today’s mega-cities does not really relate to his/her neighborhood, and in his/her view, it is just another part of the city and has no special characteristics that sets it apart, therefore, the city dweller almost always has a sense of alienation and estrangement from his/her neighborhood. The aim of the present study is to identify those factors that are important in shaping neighborhood Identity in big cities. The research method used in this study is survey and the instrument of data collection is questionnaire. 260 individuals above the age of 20 residing in Abasabad and Mardavij neighborhoods in the city of Isfahan were compared. Systematic random sampling was used to select sample members. Factor analysis was utilized to measure latent variables and to test their goodness of fit. Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient for “feelings of Safety” was 0.79; for “sense of belonging” was 0.80; and for “social interaction” was 0.76. An analysis of major components showed that the “neighborhood Identity” questionnaire was comprised of three items, namely that of “feelings of Safety”; “sense of belonging”; and “social interaction”. Therefore, it can be concluded that the construct of “neighborhood Identity” is a valid measurement of that concept.

Civic participation is affected by different factors and variables. The aim of present study is to study the factors that influence residents’ civic participation. The data for this research was gathered by using survey method and a self-report questionnaire that involved 182 residents of Khoram Aabad city that were selected through a multi stage cluster sampling method. The results showed that there exists a direct and statistically significant relationship between social trust, perceived usefulness of civic participation, socialization for civic participation, and the social and economic status of residents with residents’ participation. Multiple regression analysis suggested that social trust, perceived usefulness of civic participation, and socialization for civic participation have direct and positive effects and that the social and economic status of residents has an indirect effect on residents’ civic participation.

Migration is one of the factors causing population change and has both long and short term ‎positive and negative effects on the social and economic structures of both the place of ‎origins and the place of destination. In the present study, the impact of migration on the ‎socio-economic structures of the city of Shahinshahr, as a place that receives many migrants ‎each year, has been compared to the socio-economic structures of the city of Khomeini-shahr, ‎as a control group, since the population in Khomeini-shahr is relatively stable and does not ‎experience much migration. This is a survey type of study and the technique of data collection was questionnaire. 200 ‎heads of households of each of these cities were asked to provide the need information. Chi ‎square and the t test were used for analytical purposes.‎ Research results showed that immigration affects the whole economic structure (the job ‎structure, type of business, ownership of residence) and also the social structure (social ‎solidarity, social values, age of marriage, worries and concerns about social deviance, ‎reducing social controls, marriages within the group, tend to promote traditional and social).‎ Results also have shown that the social and economic structure of the city of Shahinshahr is ‎very different from that of the city of Khomeini-sharh. This could be due to the fact that ‎Shahin-shahr is an immigrant place, and Khomeini-shahr is a place of old residents who are ‎mostly non-migratory.‎

This article reviews the degree and influence of social capital on social relationships of residents of residential buildings. To accomplish that goal, of the different components of social capital; the effects of awareness, trust, Participation, social commitment, social obligations, and continuity have been considered. The theoretical framework of the article based on the ideas of Putnam, Coleman, Fukuyama, and Bourdieu. The research method was survey and tool for the collection of data was questionnaire. The research population consisted of the residents of two suburbs, i.e. Malekshahr and Sepahanshahr. 192 individuals from each of these suburbs were chosen using the available sampling technique. Pearson correlation coefficient was used to test the hypotheses. The research results showed that social capital was significantly (r=0.48) related to social relations in both suburbs. Of the different components of social capital, both social commitment and social obligations were equally significant (r=0.25) in both suburbs, but the effects of other components, although significant, varied by suburb.

Citizenship is the most dynamic concept in modern society. It recognizes the individuals’ ability to make judgments about their own lives; therefore, the very characteristic of citizenship is the participatory ethics. Citizenship is an active situation, that is to say, that in addition to rights, it also includes duties and commitments. Therefore, it is an excellent basis for the management of human affairs. Due to its set of rights, duties and commitments, citizenship is also a good way for the fair and just distribution and management of resources by dividing life’s responsibilities and benefits. Active citizenship tends to empower individuals and communities and it values participation in and for itself. Therefore, active citizenship is more than the mere enhancement of general participation, that is, it requires citizens to participate in order to improve the city as a living space. Thus, it gives to citizens the abilities to participate in the planning and provision of social services.

Citizenship is concerned with the ways an individual relates to other individuals and to the society. T.H. Marshal believes that citizenship is firstly a situation that is derived from an individual’s complete membership in the society, and secondly that those who have such a situation also have equal and identical rights and responsibilities. It should be remembered that citizenship brings with it a sense of responsibility, and that the feelings of citizenship in its deepest sense has two important dimensions: An important dimension of citizenship is to have work ethics, without which no progress can be obtained. Civic responsibility emerges where true civic society is established, but civic society would not emerge without the activities of a citizenry who lacks a strong sense of responsibility. Culture of citizenship has always been an important issue for those scholars who were concerned with social issues that affect human progress and civilization. This study aims to study the citizenship culture of Tehrani residents. Culture of citizenship was measured with indices such as social participation, social responsibility, and abiding by laws. Research method was survey and a questionnaire was distributed among 150 residents of region 6 who were selected using a quota sampling technique. Measures of central tendency and other descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Research results showed that culture of citizenship among respondents was at a medium level (in all the three components) and that there was a statistically significant relationship between culture of citizenship and urban structural development.

Social capital is a concept whose popularity in social sciences is rapidly growing and the range of its application is also on the increase to the extent that some social scientists consider it to be panacea that can cure almost all of the problems of the modern society. Research in this area also shows that it can indeed have positive effects and ramifications in dealing with many of the difficulties that contemporary societies face. Like other capitals, social capital is productive and can lay the grounds for making benefits from economic and cultural capitals already existing in the society. This study aims to look at the effects of different kinds of capital (economic, social, and cultural) on the quality of life of Tehrani residents. Research method is survey and a questionnaire was used to collect the needed data. A sample of 400 residents provided the information. Research results showed that all components of social capital, namely social trust, social participation, social awareness, social networks, were positively related to quality of life. The overall correlation coefficient between social capital and quality of life was 0.53, meaning that about 28 percent of the variance of quality of life is determined by social capital. Of the different components of social capital, social trust had the most influence with a correlation coefficient of 0.546 and a coefficient of determination of 0.298.