SOCI 4620 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Urban Sociology, Saskia Sassen, Social Forces
24 Apr 2021
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Document Summary
The ability to understand the connection between social forces and personal experiences is what c. Urban sociology: the study of social life in metropolitan areas, long, rich history in sociology, examines the interaction of individuals and groups with social processes and structures that shape urban areas: Understand how individual experiences are shaped by social forces/structures in cities: Neighbourhood social structure: poverty, segregation/social exclusion, housing/jobs/access to transit. Cities have diverse boundaries (social, geographic, economic, political, legal and cultural: characteristics of urban areas impact social interactions and experiences and outcomes: Density of concentration of residents / businesses. Community institutions (churches, schools, clubs, community centres) Migration, globalization, inequalities: settlement patterns (diversity, gentrification, social networks, social class, interactions between diverse groups produce new cultures, ideologies, and political mobilizations (ulrich beck calls this enforced cosmopolitanism, impact of social structures/built environment on urban ecology. Saskia sassen (2007) points to new forms of inequality emerging in global cities: information economy.
