Understanding Social Planning: Key Concepts and Case Studies
School
University of Waterloo**We aren't endorsed by this school
Course
PLAN 233
Subject
Sociology
Date
Dec 11, 2024
Pages
25
Uploaded by fernandes784
PLAN 233 Midterm Study:Intro to Social PlanningSocial Planning Definition:“a process that addresses societal conditions in communities”-Vilches + Gurstein, 2016Who does Social Planning?:Multiple interested and impacted parties in social planning:○Social planning councils○Health care workers, social service workers, housing advocates, police, teachers○Urban planners, architects, developers, urban/landscape designers○Policy - makers○CitizensCase Study: Lone Parents In East Vancouver Main TakeawaysWhy did we read the case study this week?1.Context for social planning in Canada•Policy + people•Budgetary constraints•Service delivery2.Introduction to social planning concepts we will cover later in the course•Planning + social (in)justice•Socio-spatial relations•Inequality + Intersectionality,etc3. Context for 5 Little Indians•East Vancouver: “ Service - dependent neighborhoods”•Dense network of social services•Pedestrian experiences•People, policy, and place
“Our vision:Inclusive and vibrant communities, respectfully connected to the natural world, for the well-being of current and future generations.”-Canadian Institute of Planners“Inclusive and vibrant communities, respectfully connected to the natural world, for the well -being of current and future generations.”Week 2What are Social Problems?Social Problems + the Sociological ImaginationSociological imagination (Mills, 1959) is the ability to see connections between one’s own lifeand the social world in which one lives.
Personal problems vs. Social issuesPublic Issues - matters that transcend the lives of individuals and cannot be resolved bychanging them or their personal relationships.Personal Troubles - private matters connected with individuals’ characters or confined to theirimmediate relationships (with family members, friends, acquaintances, co-workers,etc.).What Is a “Social Problem”?A social problem is a social condition or pattern of behaviour that is believed to warrant publicconcern and collective action.○Social condition or pattern of behavior■Pedestrian deaths, food desserts, housing crisis○Public concern + collective action■Influence policy, planning, and design■Connection between social planning and social problemObjective Elements of Social ProblemsObjective elements are the measurable features of harmful social condition.○e.g. crime rates, poverty, or alcohol abuse
●Systematic measurements show that the condition exists and that it harms people.●Causes and effects can be studied without making a moral judgment on whether it is “serious”or “trivial.”●Can count and measure their incidence.●Can study changes in social life that cause the numbers or rates.●Can make and test theories about their changing occurrence.Subjective Elements of Social ProblemsSubjective elements are personal evaluations of objective conditions and the processes thatinfluence their evaluations.●includes the moral labels (e.g., “wrong,” “immoral,” “sick,” etc.) that people apply to particularacts or situations●includes the accounts people give for these acts and situations.●reflects people’s beliefs and tastes.When believed, these subjective elements become a social reality in their own right.○e.g., “smoking marijuana is evil”, “multiculturalism is good”, “elderly people are incompetent”Such beliefs set in motion actions that have social consequences (e.g., new legislation orpolicies).○They become harder to measure and to explain.Objective and Subjective Elements, TogetherA social problem is both:○An empirically observed condition that threatens the well - being of a significant part of society,and○A process or sequence of events by which members of society come to see a condition as asocial problem that warrants collective action.
Subjectivity + Social ConstructionismAccording to social constructionism, a subjective view of reality, not reality itself, shapes one’sbehaviour.●examines the ways people interact to create a shared social reality●when people define a situation as real, the situation will be real in its effectsSocial Constructionism, cont’d●Some social problems are simply not real problems.○Some individuals will view them as social problems while others do not.○But how individuals frame these problems involves a process known as claim -making.Claim-making:A procedure that describes, explains, and blames those involved with theproblem — labeling them as deviants.Claims - making, Crime + Queerness●prior to 1969 same - sex sexual activity between consenting adults was criminalized in Canada●could lead to indefinite imprisonment of those who engaged in these activities.●LGBTQIA2S+ people in Canada have been subjected to police surveillance and harassment○ including place - based police violence - raids on queer spaces, such as bars andbathhousesCover of Toronto Star after 1981 “Operation Soap”, 200 police raided targeted queer spaces,286 men were charged.Why Study Social Problems?Social problems research...●aims to change society to protect “vulnerable” + amend injustices.●examines underlying myths, ideologies, + stereotypes that perpetuate harmful conditions:○Media often turn public issues into private troubles.○Victims are blamed and stigmatized for having these problems.○There is a need to examine the underlying causes for these realities.Theoretical Perspectives on Social Problems:●Structural functionalism●Conflict theory●Symbolic interactionism●Feminist theory●Decolonial theoryStructural Functionalism
Structural functionalism views society as interconnected elements that work together topreserve stability and efficiency in society.●social institutions perform both manifest and latent functions.What creates social problems?Functionalists believe that during periods of rapid change, social disorganization results wheninstitutions fail to do their role.Structural Functionalism, cont’d●Émile Durkheim (1893): Anomie○Social norms are weak or come into conflict with one another.○As traditional norms and relations break down, social control declines.○People feel less tied to each other.○Deviant behaviour increases.○Solution: need to strengthen social norms and slow the pace of social change.Conflict TheoryConflict theory rejects the structural functionalist notion of social consensus, and argues that:○Conflict and change are basic features of social life, which pits the wealthy privileged andpowerful against the “poor and powerless”.○Workers feel alienated — unable to change their circumstances.○The wealthy use power to maintain their status and power.Conflict Theory, cont’dWhat creates social problems?Conflict theorists suggest social problems stem from conflicts○Conflicts are due to unequal access to limited economic resources leading to conflict andpower struggle in society.○Conflicting individuals and groups/classes routinely struggle for domination over others.Conflict Theory, cont’d●Karl Marx (1848): posited that in industrialized capitalist societies, two broad groups emerge:1.Bourgeoisie (i.e., the elite owners) of the means of production2.Proletariat (i.e., the working class) who must sell their labor in exchange for a wage●Capitalists use their great economic power and political influence to ensure that they remain ina position of dominance over other workers.Symbolic Interactionism
Symbolic interactionism focuses on small - group interactions.●Sees society as made up of people who interact and share meanings, definitions, andinterpretations with one another.●Analyzes how people come to frame certain situations as social problems and how peoplelearn to engage in such “framing” activities.Symbolic Constructionism (grows from symbolic interactionism)Recall: Social constructionism examines how people interact to create a shared social reality.●Problematic behaviors are socially learned and practiced in social settings.●Socialization and labeling shape deviant identities and subcultures.○Labeling theory + The Case of the Elevator FarterFeminist Theory●Feminist theory focuses on the notion of gender inequality and sees conflict genders as abasic feature of all societies, based on a social system of patriarchy.○Biological differences do not explain, let alone justify separate social roles, rights, andresponsibilities. Instead, gender inequality is a result of socioeconomic and ideological factors.Feminist Theory, cont’d●Patriarchy: Patriarchy is a form of social organization in which men are the rulers of thehousehold, community, and society.○Domination of other genders and children by adult men.●Gendering of experiences●Classic VS Intersectional feminismDecolonial Theory:Decolonial theory looks at the systemic nature in which oppression affects the lives of formerlycolonized people.●Rather than modernity being the focus of analysis, coloniality should be the center of attention○there is no modernity without colonialism○modern institutions rooted in colonial practice■global international division of Labour connected to racial/ethnic hierarchiesDecolonial Theory con’t
●The " coloniality of power" is an expression coined by Anibal Quijano to name thestructures of power and control that have emerged during the modernist era, the era ofcolonialism, which stretches from the conquest of the Americas to the present.●Settler colonialism is a type of colonialism in which the indigenous peoples of acolonized region are displaced by settlers who permanently form a society there.Week 3: Historic Approaches to Planning for Social ProblemsIndigenous peoples have been planning since time immemorial.-Hirini MatungaPre- ConfederationBefore planning was officially recognized as a profession (in 1919), the tools we now recognizeas “planning” were linked to colonization.○Examples of “colonial spatial technologies” (Libby Porter):■Mapping, categorizing, surveying lands, renaming places○Recall: Settler colonialism■Terra nullius + the Doctrine of Discovery●Assumption of superiority over Indigenous peoples●Marginalization + genocide of Indigenous peoples○Reserve system + residential schools○Settlements developed across transportation networksTerra Nullius -> Urbs Nullius
The “Progressive” Era for Social Planninglate 19th , early 20th century○Infancy of social activism■Response to living conditions of working poor in industrialized cities○“moral failings of slum dwellers” (Thomas, p 9)■Shift from Social Darwinism -> environmental conditions as determinant for morals andbehaviors○Threats to “the family structure” (Thomas, p 9)■Connection to theoretical perspectives on social problems?■Addressed through building codes, education, advocacy, mediaThe “Progressive” Era for Social Planning con’tlate 19th, early 20th centuryExamples of progressive era social planning in Canada:○Examination and documentation of poverty and unhealthy living conditions■City Below the Hill (Sir Herbert Brown Ames, 1897)■National Council of Women on child welfare in urbanizing cities (1890s-1920s)○Infrastructure for public health■Public water systems●(ie Ottawa in 1872)
■Innovation in transportation●(ie. streetcars allowed workers to live further away from industry)The “Progressive” Era for Social Planning con’tlate 19th, early 20th centuryCity Beautiful as Social Planning:●Architect - led movement to beautify urban environments○Environmental improvements = solution to social ills○Professional - led and largely undemocratic process for elites■What did the social reformers think of this?●Parks and Playgrounds movement●i.e. Olmsted + Mount Royal, 1876●Banff National Park, 1885●Emergence of land use controls to keep industry out of beautified area, but also discriminatorypractices to keep out “undesirables”○Restrictive covenantsThe First Stages of the Profession + the “Progressive” Era1900 -1930“Town planning may be defined as the scientific and orderly disposition of land and buildings inuse and development with a view to obviating congestion and securing economic and socialefficiency, health, and well - being in urban and rural communities.”-Town Planning Institute of Canada (1920s)The “New Deal” Era1930s●Reaction to the Great Depression in 1930s○Roosevelt’s “New Deal” to reignite economy with federal investments●Improve conditions of ‘middle - class’○Priority on housing (for some)○Fast track to home - ownership with new builds and mortgage lending rules○Less need for government intervention in Canada, compared to USAThe “New Deal” Era + WWII in Canada1930s- 44
1930s in Canada saw a major focus on social welfare (housing!)○The Chicago School approach■Social ecology – systematic approach that looks at the interdependence of social systems●Citizen groups and social welfare agencies documenting and analyzing social conditions(overcrowding, substandard housing etc.)The “New Deal” Era and WWII in Canada1930s - 44○The League for Social Reconstruction■Leftist - socialist lawyers, ministers, politicians, architects, social workers■Recommendations for:●old age pensions, unemployment insurance, mothers’ allowances, healthcare, town planning,and social housing○The Dominion Housing Act (1935) -> National Housing ActThe “New Deal” Era and WWII in Canada1930s - 44Major developments in housing across the country between 1941 - 1945...○Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), est. 1946■National planning agency■Strong regulatory framework■Financial power■Crown corporation maintains control over design of new housing● Guidelines for land - use separation, light/air flow●Suburban housing + the “ideal” nuclear family○During this time, major planning developments influenced Canada’s social fabric:■Zoning bylaws■Provincial, municipal and regional planningMeanwhile... Rational Planning lays foundations for Urban Renewal (post - WWII).
Rational Planning & Urban Renewal1944- 70During this time, we see “the dawn and dusk of the planning expert”.●Professional formalization○First planning schools (i.eMcGill, 1947, UBC 1950)○Revival of Canadian Institute of Planners, 1952●Rational Planning Model and technocratic supremacy○Emphasis on rational expertise of planner and ‘his’ tools■Scientific methods to solve planning problems○Agreement that planning = social advancement■“common good”, “public interest”Rational Planning & Urban Renewal1944- 70Post WWII brought urbanization and rapid immigration in Canada.●Families moving to suburbs -> Immigrant settlements in inner cities○Maintained vibrant communities downtown●Preference for public housing vs “slums”○Urban renewal funded by CMHC, provincial + federal govts○Between 1964 to 1972 300 renewal studies supported by CMHCAdvocacy Planning Era(1960s & 1970s)●Backlash towards RPM and urban renewal○Technocrats → advocates○Lindblom, Jacobs, Davidoff critique of the profession and urban life○Questioning and reconciling of values○Heavily influenced by movements in 1960s and 1970s●’People - focused’ approaches○Planners as advocates for ‘multiple publics’ especially socially - economically disadvantaged
○Inclusion of all within political processes via community engagement○Institutionalized community development○Shift from clearance to repair focus on “neighborhood improvement”■Ie. CMHC’s Rehabilitation Assistance ProgramAdvocacy Planning Con’tUshered in a time of questioning the approach and power of planners and the planning systemto effect “needed change”.●Emergence of Communicative Planning Theories○Empowerment of residents as decision - makers○Importance of dialogue, education of public as experts○Consensus - building among opponents○Inclusive processes → inclusive outcomes■What could go wrong?!Postmodernism in Canada(1970 to 2000)●Neoliberalism gaining prominence●Decrease public expenditures○Rise of public - private partnerships
○Focus on efficiency and cost - effectiveness●Planning has growing concern for social, community, environmental issues○Shifting role of planners from expert to facilitator●Rising inequality across and within Canadian citiesThe “Just City” Era(2000s+)This era is a reaction to the shortcomings of Advocacy and Communicative PlanningIs communication enough?○Dialogue and communication insufficient to challenge structural issues -> power!○Community mobilization and empowerment to combat inequity. How do we achieve justice?○What policies are needed beyond procedures?Susan Fainstein’s “Just City” as policy - specific and outcome - driven evolution from advocacyand communicative planning approaches.What is The Just City? con’tAccording to Fainstain, just cities require:1.Democracy - equal participation in society regardless of identity; deliberation & communication2. Diversity - society is a plural entity; multiple identities and sub- populations with varyingamounts of power3.Equity- fairness in outcome not treatment as the predominant measure of a ‘good’ and ‘just’societyUrban Justice“...justice as the absence of forms of domination (exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness,cultural imperialism, and violence).”-Fainstein, quoting Young“A leader in sustainability and a future - ready community for all”-City of Waterloo
Types of Justice Con’tRecognition:●Recognition, or the acknowledgment and respect for another human, their status, andrights○Recognition of Aboriginal and treaty rights (Section 35, Constitution Act), distinct fromother equity - seeking groups●Considers how certain populations, their values and experience, are made visible or invisible inpolicy and decision making processes●Ex. The value and meaning trees have across neighborhoods and culturesWeek 4: Socio - spatial Relations + SocializationSocialization:Socialization is the process of learning (and possibly conforming to) the social roles, skills,motives, norms, expectations and values of a society.
Agency + SocializationAgency refers to the perceived human capacity to actively develop a personal identity.Agents of Socialization:Social groups and social institutions provide experiences for and influence on socialization.●Social Group Agents○Family, peer groups●Institutional Agents○School, the workplace, religion, government, mass media○Example of the “hidden curriculum”■Informal teaching done by schoolsSocialization Across Generations + LifecourseSocialization is not a one - time or short - term event.●Social varies between generations○Ex. Millennials + delayed attainment of markers for adulthood●Socialization is ongoing throughout one’s life course○Ex. Age-related transitions○Ex. Resocialization■when old behaviors that were helpful in a previous role are removed because they are nolonger of use■typically more stressful than “normal” socialization■often occurs in a total institution where people are isolated from society and are forced tofollow someone else’s rules.
Socio-spatial RelationsThe relationship between populations (social) and their geographical distribution (spatial).Socio-spatial Relations●Any measure of population○age, race, religion, income, behaviour...●Any scale○neighbourhood, city, region, nation, world region...●Can help us answer many questions relevant to social planningApproaches to Understanding Socio- spatial Relations●Quantitative approach●Behavioral approach●Structuralist approach●Socio -Spatial dialecticQuantitative Approach●Allows for measurement and description of spatial patterns○Maps, graphs, tables, models●‘Objective’ descriptions of what is happening○Attempts to be neutral and value - freeExample of Ethnic Enclaves in the GTA●Mapping demographic characteristics●Association between social (ethnic-minority groups) and spatial (suburbancommunities)●Basic linkages between people and place○Descriptive vs explanatory
Behavioral Approach●Person- centered explanation of spatial patterns○Personal activities and decisions●Social patterns are a reaction to/caused by spatial○DeterminismExample of ethnic enclaves in the GTA:●Ethnic enclaves=choice●Immigrants want to live together in separate communities○Parallel lives●Immigrant families like single detached homes aka “The Canadian DreamStructuralist Approach●Examines underlying mechanisms/process that influence spatial patterns○Very limited agency●Social structures organize socio-spatial patterns by empowering some while disempoweringothers○Capitalism○Patriarchy○White Supremacy○Settler ColonialismExample of ethnic enclaves and white flight:●Immigrants want quality housing that meets their needs and is affordable○Real estate as investment = rising property values for single detached homes in urbanareas●Immigrants want to live in areas with strong social cohesion, community connection○White flight = white families fearing “the Other” move out of suburban communities asimmigrants move in.Socio-spatial Dialectic●Reciprocity between social + spatial○Agency of individuals and structures underlying spatial conditions work in tandem toproduce spaces and places●Balance between people and places
Spatial to Social●Environments shape people○constrain/promote behaviours and movements○facilitates interactions, exposure to resources●Example of Ethnic Enclaves○Presence of non - Christian places of worship, ethnic grocery stores, cultural services drawethnic - minorities to the communitySocial to Spatial●People create their surroundings○Policies, built form, cleanliness, density○Opposition to local unwanted land uses●Example of Ethnic Enclaves○Religious minority populations will fundraise, advocate for and develop places ofworship in their community to support their desire to practice religion, socialize within their localneighborhood (which attracts others who want to worship there)Equity and Agency●Who has the most social power to act within and shape the city?●Where do spatial conditions have the greatest impact?●The Right to the City○Henri Lefebvre, French philosopher, activist, urbanist in 1960s/70s“The right to the city is not merely a right of access to what already exists, but a right to changeit after our heart’s desire. We need to be sure we can live with our own creations (a problem forevery planner, architect and utopian thinker). But the right to remake ourselves by creating aqualitatively different kind of urban sociality is one of the most precious of all human rights."-David HarveyWeek 5: Urban Inequality“Intersectionality is a metaphor for understanding the ways that multiple forms of inequality ordisadvantage sometimes compound themselves and create obstacles that often are notunderstood among conventional ways of thinking."—Kimberlé Williams CrenshawKNOW 3 DIFFERENT MEASURES AND THE DIFFERENCES OF POVERTY
Measuring Poverty:●threshold for representing the lower limit of the usual standard of living●Differs across + within societies●Varies over timeImpacts of Poverty + InequalitySOCIAL:●Work + unemployment●Crime + violence●Drug + alcohol use●Impacts on childrenHEALTH:●Poverty impacts health (access to food, healthcare,etc)●Relative income hypothesisPoverty in Canada“Racialized, destitute, and young” – Tepperman, p. 38●Rise in urban poverty●More common among racial minorities●Overrepresentation of Indigenous peoples●Unsheltered youth●Disproportionate numbers of people with disabilitiesEconomic InequalityEconomic Inequality: differences in income and wealth across individuals and within a society●Inequality on the rise in Canada●Measure inequality using the Gini Coefficient (p. 37)●Inequality itself impacts health and wellbeing.Economic Inequality con’t●Classes, hierarchies, and social organization●Social Stratification: how societies categorize people based on factors such as wealth, income,education, family background, and power● Social Mobility … and life chances/choicesLife Chances + Choices
○Max Weber , German sociologist○Theory on the opportunities each individual has to improve their quality of life○Probabilistic (not deterministic)●Categories that impact life chances:○social class of birth, geographic location, family ancestry, race, ethnicity, age, gender,ability, etc.●Chances <-> choicesInequality + Segregation in Toronto●Toronto’s Three Cities (Hulchanski)●Divisions within the city increasing based on income (1970-2005)○City 1: High-income neighbourhoods in central city and along corridors → Slightincrease○City 2: Middle-income neighbourhoods inner suburbs → Dramatic decrease○ City 3: Low- income neighbourhoods in northern suburbs → Substantial increaseWhy is segregation a problem?Ideological●UN Declaration on Human Rights●Charter of Rights and FreedomsAccess to amenities●Increased LULUs●Limited public goods and services●Relative deprivationQuality of life●Declines in health and happiness●Lower life expectancy●Lack of social inclusion and community cohesionWhy is segregation a problem? con’t●Segregation= no choice○Legal and formal policies restricting place of residence○Informal policies resulting in clustering and segregation●Societies based on racial capitalism (Canada and USA) practiced state - led segregationwith remnants still visible today●Examples:○Racial Zoning ( ie 1910 in Baltimore, Maryland)○Racial Restrictive Covenants○Redlining ( ie Africville, Nova Scotia)
○Urban Renewal○Ongoing Influence of social hierarchies (think: right to the city)Stratification, Segregation + Life Chances:Income Inequality in Vancouver Shaughnessy●Population: 8,807●MHI: $105,731●Pop below LICO: 13.1%●Luxury, high - end livingDowntown Eastside●Population: 18,000●MHI: $13,691●Pop below LICO: 79.8%●“Canada’s poorest postal code”March 8, 2024Social Determinants of Health + Planning for Community WellbeingSocial Determinants of Health:In general: social, economic, political factorsCanadian Perspective:Income + inequalityEducationEmployment + job securityEmployment + working conditionsEarly childhood developmentFood securityHousingSocial exclusionSocial safety netHealth servicesIndigenous statusGenderRace/immigration statusSocial Determinants of Health + Planning
Learn more for Planning for Healthy Cities:“Healthy urban planning is about planning for people. It means putting the needs of people andcommunities at the heart of the urban planning process and considering theimplications of decisions for human health and well-being.”- World Health Organization (WHO)Diversity + Mental Health con’t“What if we reimagined the city as a site of treatment instead of a punitive and emotionallyharsh place, especially for members of marginalized communities?”“Such a shift requires neighborhood networks and support systems, ongoing professionaldevelopment services for mental health providers, safe green and healthy public spaces, andsupportive workplaces”- Pitter, p. 85
“Health equity is created when individuals have the fair opportunity to reach their fullest healthpotential. Achieving health equity requires reducing unnecessary and avoidable differences thatare unfair and unjust. Many causes of health inequities relate to social and environmentalfactors including: income, social status, race, gender, education and physical environment.”-Public Health OntarioHealth Inequity in Canada“Health inequities in Canada exist, are persistent, and in some cases, are growing.”– Public Health Agency of Canada, p.3●Significant health inequalities among:○Indigenous peoples○Sexual minorities○Racial minorities○Immigrants○Functional limitations■Functional limitations result from disabilities and are restrictions in an individual's functioningthat hinder the ability to perform tasks or activities○Socioeconomic statusHealth Inequity as a Social ProblemHealth inequities are a social problem because… they “are inconsistent with Canadian values,threaten the cohesiveness of community and society, challenge the sustainability of the healthsystem, and have an impact on the economy”-Public Health Agency of Canada, 2018