Invitation to Urban Studies
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Urban is sociological variable affecting people
systematic/identifiable ways;
Urban sociology scientific study seeking to
discover systematic causes and effects;
Urban sociology has difficulty defining what
is meant by urban ;
Going to study city- matrix of structures and
activities comprising largest, most complex
social organizational forms;
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Enacted- planned as a unit from beginning,
changes are deliberate and planned out;
Crescive- elements emerge gradually,
interrelationships not due to formal
deliberation but spontaneous accomodations
among different parts;
Ecology- refers to natural order worked out
over time by individuals; variety of life forms
use same environment in mutual ways;
Challenge of understanding informal
structure of cities fact that urban areas lack
physical or spatial closure; we have not
reached limits of urban influence when we can
no longer see city skyline on horizon;
Another challenge: cities and nature of urban
life vary among societies; Urban places look
and operate differently within same society at
different pts of time;
Public spaces- there is need to reach back into store of
knowledge- of public or streetlore-about how to move
through crowds, what seat to choose on bar or bus,
how not to draw unwanted attention, conducting
yourself while standing in lines;
 Cities as Culture- Cultural influences in city
communicated to rest of society; high culture as
representing “true” cultural expression of city;
 What do cities symbolize? City as dangerous place;
high visibility of minorities and immigrant groups;
cultural transitions, immigrant groups make peace
with host society; transforming neighborhoods and
streets;
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Prejudice and discrimination leading to exclusion;
Going private- public places-parks, squares, bear
logos of corporate sponsors; bringing
unpredictability of urban environment under
control; e.g. surveillance of homeless, street kids,
punks;
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Structural elements channel perception and
movement;
Lynch(1960) identified five elements: paths, edges,
districts, nodes, and landmarks;
Paths- directs people travel in moving;
Edges- barriers hemming in movement
Districts- large areas having cohesive quality; e.g.
Chinatown in SF;
Nodes- smaller public places, junctions, turning pts,
traffic circles, squares;
Landmarks- outstanding feature of cityscape; anchor
individual’s mental map; people usually pass them
rather than entering; (12)
Whyte(1988) How welcoming is our public space?
People are drawn to other people and to crowds;
obstructed pedestrians squeezing past are polite and
unruffled (13) Crowded sidewalk “schmoozers” natural
habitat; engineering of microenvironments important
in whether space is seen as welcoming;
 Low ledges along buildings designed to discourage
sitting intended to keep people moving;
 Food, sound of falling water, shade in summer and
sunlight in winter will comfort them;
Urban environments shape social life.
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Lofland(1985) people taking matters into own
hands making public space their own
Passing from status of regular “customer” to
“patron” to “resident” recognizable fixture in
minds of others; “colonized the territory” a
semi-privatized realm;
Envelope- layer(s) of attitude, demeanor, and
details of performance; other public actors
where individual operates threatening to
envelope one’s envelope urban public space rich
in situated energies;
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Growth industry private consulting
companies specializing engineering
financially successful festivals; behind
expression of solidarity and tradition are
promoters doing business (25) theming of
contemporary urban spaces promoting tourism
leading to constantly improving level of
facilities, amenities, and services; cities
underwriting costs of stadiums, festival
themed malls, convention centers (27)
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Agents of development are doing urban
sociology; applied sociology; modifying
urban environments produce particular
perceptions/ behaviors compatible with profit
motive;
Faciliating recreational behavior or shaking
down the suckers Disney and the sanitation of
experience making public spaces safe and
predictable
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Offering natural setting dramatic political
expression; providing large #s of people that
can be mobilized; providing critical mass;
containing large numbers of poor and
minorities; confrontations between law
enforcement, poor and minorities; streets
and public squares provide setting for
massing of human energies e.g. Stonewall
defiance against suppressed right to gay
sexual identity