Slum Settlements
Saeid Alitajer; Pooria Saadativaghar; Mohammad Bashir Robati; Ahmad Heydari
Abstract
In recent years, for reasons such as population growth, increased rural migration, and the migrants’ financial inability to afford housing, the host cities are facing the problem of illegal settlements that are built densely without observing the principles of construction. These are usually known ...
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In recent years, for reasons such as population growth, increased rural migration, and the migrants’ financial inability to afford housing, the host cities are facing the problem of illegal settlements that are built densely without observing the principles of construction. These are usually known as informal settlements which face many problems. One of the problems is the lack of social spaces that could act as the pillar of urban life. The issue of socialization and social interactions has been neglected in marginal and informal urban contexts, but it is more important that than in other contexts. It is because these contexts are in fact one of the most prominent manifestations of urban poverty in most Iranian cities with migration inflow. The promotion of socialization in these informal settlements, which are a part of the city’s body, is one of the main goals for increasing public welfare and citizens’ peace through the provision of their social needs. In recent years, hybrid studies have considered the relationship between cognitive maps and spatial configuration in assessing the shape of the constructed environment, but few studies have focused on adapting the findings of space layout approach by comparing cognitive maps when studying and measuring social behaviors of citizens in one of the most problematic urban contexts, i.e. informal settlements. This is an innovation in this research, an applied area and a step forward in the field of urban psychology, which can help urban planners and decision makers to identify and improve the morphology of more sociable urban neighborhoods. The present study seeks to investigate the effect of the physical-spatial characteristics of these settlements on sociability by examining the neighborhoods of Hesar and Dizaj in Hamedan. In the first step, the related literature and theoretical concepts were reviewed by library research and consulting with valuable sources on spatial configuration, socialization, and informal settlements. In the second step, the maps of the two neighborhoods were simulated in the Space Syntax software and analyzed formally and morphologically as follows. In the analysis of research data, in line with the natural motion theory, the role of spatial configuration was examined in the formation of behavioral and social patterns (in particular, socialization behavior). In fact, this applied study is based on a mixed methodology. In the first step, quantitative techniques were used along with the theory of natural motion, the theory of space syntax, as well as Arc GIS and UCL Depth Map software packages to analyze spatial configuration and its role in the social behavior of citizens with the aim of specifying the physical-spatial factors which influence sociability in urban spaces. The next step aimed at determining the validity and reliability of the results. In this step, the quantitative results were reconsidered by means of the qualitative method of cognitive maps. According to the findings, spatial configuration may affect the sociability of informal settlements through five indicators, namely, control, connectivity, integration, depth, and legibility. It may also affect people’s attendance, motion, face-to-face contact, and conversations (which are the major prerequisites of the formation of social interactions). Our analysis of the abovementioned informal settlements shows that the maps of the quantitative method of space syntax almost overlap with the qualitative cognitive maps. A comparison between the two neighborhoods indicates that the tree-like and continuous space configuration of Dizaj creates a motion pattern that leads to social interactions in the middle parts of the neighborhood whereas the shrub-like configuration in Hesar distributes the patterns of motion and social behavior all over the neighborhood and leads to more desirable social effects.
Slum Settlements
akbar mohammadi; Kasra Ashouri; mohammad bashir robati
Volume 6, Issue 22 , May 2017, , Pages 75-88
Abstract
Nowadays, due to different reasons such as low financial affordability, high cost of standard housing, lack of affordable land in cities (especially for a particular population), lack of scientific criteria in finding location (for housing) or in urban development, and as urban development processes ...
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Nowadays, due to different reasons such as low financial affordability, high cost of standard housing, lack of affordable land in cities (especially for a particular population), lack of scientific criteria in finding location (for housing) or in urban development, and as urban development processes surpass rational urban planning and managemen, most cities and urban habitats are located in sites which are exposed to a variety of human-made threats because of natural hazards or technological progresses. In this regard, in the case of a crisis, efforts to achieve circumstances which provide the possibility to restore the conditions before crisis or increasing the flexibility of those cities and habitats are of high importance. Resilience is a new approach proposed as a novel perspective to deal with rapid changes and increasing needs and complications of cities. In most cases, this approach is used to face the unknowns or uncertainties. Resilience is also emphasized over vulnerability. The concept of resilience has evolved over time; in the recent decade, it has peculiarly been the center of attention in scientific and political debates. The present applied research tries to recognize and evaluate the effective factors on social and institutional resilience in Naisar detached urban district of Sanandaj. It also attempts to optimally adapt those factors by using descriptive, analytic and comparative methods. Naisar district is located at the northeast of Sanandaj. It is 309.5 hectares making it the largest spontaneous settlement of the city. At the beginning, this area was in the form of a village in Sanandaj suburbs, but, due to lack of residential land in the city (Sanandaj has many hills unsuitable for residential construction), the village turned into a satellite area for the overflowing population of the city in the 90s. In the census of villages in 1996, the population of Naisar was announced to be 938. The interesting point is the rapid increase in Naisar population over the past 15 years. The population of Naisar was 12480 in 2006. In 2011, it increased by 29.5% and reached 27377. Like many such settlements, Naisar has a very low resilience in the face of incidents. The purpose of this research is to investigate the social and institutional resilience criteria in this settlement. To this end, the indices and influential factors on social and institutional resilience in these settlements were first identified and defined operationally through library research. Then, the resilience level of the spontaneous settlement of Naisar was determined through AIR, RIF and CIR formulas. The results of the research indicated low levels of resilience in this settlement. Based on the findings, it seems that more factors are effective on the evaluation of the resilience level of the spontaneous settlement of Naisar due to its unfavorable conditions. The results also indicate that, in Naisar detached urban district, as one of the particular settlements of Sanandaj which has been recognized as an informal settlement, social resilience has a more favorable situation than institutional resilience.
