Sociology of Urbanization Flashcards
WK 1
What is Urban Life
Urban Life refers to the life of people living in places regared as been urban. How this people engage in day to day social interaction, economic activities, education. E.G the life of people living in Lekki.
WK 1
Advantages of Urban life
- Transpotation
- Social Amenities
- Job opportunities
- Health care system
- Access to better educational systems
- formal security
- Social interaction and diversity
- Entertainment and Recreation
WK 1
Disadvantage of Urban Life
- Overcrowding
- Pollution
- Loss of community
- health concerns
- Security risks
WK 1
What is Sociology Of Urban life
Sociology of urban life is a discipline that makes use of sociological theories and perspective in understanding the life and interaction of people in urban areas.
It makes use of Sociological methodologies such as observation, social theory, interviews and statistical analysis among other methods to study the stuctures, environmental process, changes and problems of urban areas, aiding urban planning and policy making.
WK 1
List and Discuss the work of the foundational thinkers on urbanization
before the chicago school
- Karl Marx
- Ferdinand Tonnies
- Emile Durkheim
- Max Weber
- Georg simmel
- Pirre Bourdieu
WK 1
List and Discuss the three foundational theories in Sociology of Urban Life
- Community Lost
- Community Saved
- Community Liberated
WK 1
Define urbanization and urban areas
Urbanization can be defined to be the gradual increase of propotion of people living in urban areas, either by rural-urban migration or increased fertility. Urbanization is characterised by population growth, economic transformation and development in infrastructure.
What is considered an urban area, varies across societies as different definations can be used to categorize urban area, generally speaking it is mostly characterised by high population density, predominance of built environment and Socioeconomic activity over agricultural activities
WK 1
What do you understand by the term “Urbanism”
Urbanism refers to the complex and multidimentional relationship between people, their built environment and their social environment. It explores how human interactions shapes and shaped by their enviornment, how the people culture finds expression in their buildings and in the social policies that govern them, how the organization of cities affect the enconomic activities and vise vase
WK 1
What is a city
The term city has no unified and globally accepted defination this is as a result of the dynamic and constantly evolving nature of cities and what is considered a city varies geographically, historically and within social and cultural context
- Legal defination: City in this context is seen as a legally recognised administrative entity and serves certain legal functions, have defined boundaries and serve as the seat of power
- Demographic definition: looking at city from this lens, cities are characterised by high population density, a diverse population, Urban lanscapes and Urban lanscapes
- Economic definition: Economically, cities are center of production, consumption and innovation, which serve as Economic powerhouses and Bussiness hubs, characterized by high amount of terciary economic activities
WK 1
How would you define a metropolitain area
Metropolitain areas extend far beyound the bounds of a traditional city, the include a Central urban core, surrounding suburbs, interconneted transportation networks linking multiple areas, and shared resources
WK 4
Talk about Robert E. park contribution to urbanization
- Concept of urban Ecology: In his book “The City” (1925) which park draws from Darwins “web of life” which talks about the relationships in the natural ecology between animals and their environment. Park applied this to humans and social systems emphasizing a parallel between both the human comunities and the natural ecology. Urban ecology proposes that human communities are like those found in the natural ecosystem and are governed by the same natural laws such as territorial organization, connection to land, symbiotic interdependence, competition, Dominance and succession.
- park also emphasised that cities are made up of layers, ecological, economical, political, morals
WK 4
“Urbanism as a way of life” by louis writh Discuss
He explained urbanism to refer to how the way of life (culture) of people is shaped by the characteristics of urban areas. urbanism according to him reflects a range of factors from rapid social change to individualism and materialism.
Characteristics of urbanism
- The Norm and Social Role conflict
- Rapid Social and Cultural Change
- Impersonless and Lack of intimate relationship
- Materialism
- Individualism
- Mobility
- Increase in formal social control
WK 5
Explain the Concentric zone model by Ernest Burgess
Ernest Burgess in the Concentric zone model (1925) state that social group are based on socio-economic status of households and distance from the center. He believed that cities grow outward in a predictable pattern from the CBD forming concentric ring around the center (CBD). The Model is made up of 5 zones
- The CBD: The center of the city, home for commecial and teriary economic activities, tall buildings due to high population density, complext and vast transport systems allowing for commuting. E.g Lagos Island
- Transition Zone: This can be described as the least most desiarable city to live in, it is characterised by abandoned companies and deteriorating buildings as it was once used as an industrial location, those reciding in this zone are considered the poorest or immigrant who can’t affored better leaving conditions. E.g Mushin, Ajenjule
- Working class Zone: also called the “inner city” or “inner suburbs”, consist mainly of rental home built for factory single workers, has better commuting cost to the CBD, preferred location for second generation immigrants when ever they can affored it. E.g Surulere
- Residential Zone: Characterized by bigger homes, mainly occupied by middle class families, better facilities, increased commuting cost. E.g Lekki Phase 1
- Commuter Zone: This is the farthers zone from the CBD, home to hign income earners with large and modern houses, less population density, Very high commuting cost. E.G Epe, Badagry
Wk 6
DIscuss the homer hoyts Sector Theory
The hoyts sector theory was introduced in 1939 as an alternative to the CCD, he emphasied urban growth occured in sectors growing outward from the city majoly influened by transportation routes rather than a uniform concentric rings.
Zones:
- Central Business District
- Transportation and industry
- Low-class residential
- middle-class residential
- High-class residential
key features
- Sectorial Growth
- Land Use Patterns
- Transportation Role
- Filtering Process
WK 5
Discuss the Harris and Ullman’s Multiple Nuclei Theory
introduced in 1945 proposes that citis do not grow from a single center (CBD) but rather from multiple centers (Nuclei) based on varying activities.
Zones
- CBD
- Whole sale, Light Manufacturing
- Low-Class Residential
- Middle class residential
- High class residential
- Heavy manufacturing
- Outlying business district
- resdential suburbs
- industrail suburbs
Key features
- Deveopment of multiple centers
- Specialized functions of Nuclei
- Incompatability of certian land use
- accesibility and transportation
