SOCIOLOGY + ANTHROPOLOGY + GEOGRAPHY = URBAN PLANNING ?

I have been taught a subject on TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING for 7 years in my first and master degree. I am working as a Town Planner for more than 16 years in private and public sector. In my personal view, urban or town planning is only related to physical and land use planning. However indirectly, social, economy and environment sector are also relevant to urban planning . Now I am studying in a School of Social, Development and Environmental Studies of UKM to pursue my PHD. In order to gain more knowledge and assist my thesis writing, I read a lot of books on sociology, anthropology and urban geography. Prior to my discussion with Dr Hamzah and Dr Juneinah, I think these three subjects are related to Urban Planning. Below is my conclusion and understanding how SOCIOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY , GEOGRAPHY ARE RELATED TO URBAN PLANNING.

SOCIAL SCIENCES

Firstly, lets take a look the SOCIAL SCIENCE aspect before we go in depth the above topic. The social sciences are a group of academic disciplines that study human aspects of the world. They differ from the arts and humanities in that the social sciences tend to emphasize the use of the scientific method in the study of humanity, including quantitative and qualitative methods.The social sciences, in studying subjective, inter-subjective and objective or structural aspects of society, are traditionally referred to as soft sciences. This is in contrast to hard sciences, such as the natural sciences, which may focus exclusively on objective aspects of nature. Nowadays, however, according to proponents of this view, the distinction between the hard sciences and many of the so-called soft sciences is blurred. Currently, it is a matter of fact that some social science subfields have become very quantitative in methodology. Conversely, the interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary nature of scientific inquiry into human behavior and social and environmental factors affecting it have made many of the so-called hard sciences interested on some aspects of social science methodology.

SOCIOLOGY

Sociology is the scientific or systematic study of society, including patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and culture. Areas studied in sociology can range from the analysis of brief contacts between anonymous individuals on the street to the study of global social interaction. Numerous fields within the discipline concentrate on how and why people are organized in society, either as individuals or as members of associations, groups, and institutions. Sociology is considered a branch of social science.

Urban sociology is the sociological study of social life and human interaction in metropolitan areas. It is a normative discipline of sociology seeking to study the structures, processes, changes and problems of an urban area and by doing so providing inputs for planning and policy making. Like most areas of sociology, urban sociologists use statisticial analysis, observation, social theory, interviews, and other methods to study a range of topics, including migration and demographic trends, economics, poverty, race relations, economic trends, and etc

ANTHROPOLOGY

Anthropology consists of the study of humankind, Central to anthropology is the concept of culture and society, and that our species has evolved a universal capacity to conceive of the world symbolically, to teach and learn such symbols socially, and to transform the world (and ourselves) based on such symbols.

Urban anthropology is a branch of anthropology that focuses on cultural and social processes in urban areas. The cultural systems of cities as well as the linkages of cities to larger and smaller places and populations as part of the world-wide urban system.

GEOGRAPHY

Geography is defined as the discipline that describes and analyses the variable character, from place to place, of the Earth as the home of human society. As such, geography is an integrating discipline, studying many aspects of the physical and cultural environment that are significant to understanding the character of areas or the spatial organziation of the world. Geography provides a basis for understanding the world in which we live. Geography is also the study of the past and its features, inhabitants, and phenomena. Nonetheless, modern geography is an all-encompassing discipline that foremost seeks to understand the world and all of its human and natural complexities-- not merely where objects are, but how they have changed and come to be.

Human geography is a branch of geography that focuses on the study of patterns and processes that shape human interaction with the environment, with particular reference to the causes and consequences of the spatial distribution of human activity on the Earth's surface.

Urban geography is the study of urban areas. That is the study of areas which have a high concentration of buildings and infrastructure. These are areas where the majority of economic activities are in the secondary sector and tertiary sectors. They probably have a high population density. It can be considered a part of the larger field of human geography. However, it can often overlap with other fields such as anthropology and sociology. Urban geographers seek to understand how factors interact over space, what function they serve and their interrelationships. Urban geographers also look at the development of settlements. Therefore, it involves planning city expansion and improvements. Urban geography, then, attempts to account for the human and environmental impacts of the change. Urban geography differs from urban studies where it focuses on the city in the context of space throughout countries and continents

URBAN, CITY, OR TOWN PLANNING

Urban Planning is the discipline of land use planning which explores a very wide range of aspects of the built and social environments of urbanised municipalities and communities. Urban planning can be described as a technical and political process concerned with the welfare of people, control of the use of land, design of the urban environment including transportation and communication networks, and protection and enhancement of the natural environment. Town and Country Planning is the land use planning system by which governments seeks to maintain a balance between economic development and environmental quality. Another key role of urban planning is urban renewal, and re-generation of inner cities by adapting urban planning methods to existing cities suffering from long-term infrastructural decay.

THEREFORE, I REALLY APPRECIATE AND PASSIONATE URBAN AND COUNTRY PLANNING MORE THAN BEFORE. SOCIOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY AND GEOGRAPHY ACTUALLY PLAY SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN HUMAN ACTIVITIES AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT FOR THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE. THROUGH THIS LEARNING AND PHD PROCESS, I HOPE AND WILL GAIN MORE KNOWLDEGE ABOUT HUMAN WELL BEING IN THE CONTEXT OF SOCIAL, NATURE, ECONOMIC AND PHYSICAL.

References

· Wallace, Ruth A. & Alison Wolf. 1995. Contemporary Sociological Theory: Continuing the Classical Tradition, 4th ed., Prentice-Hall
· Wallerstein, Immanuel. (2003) "Anthropology, sociology, and other dubious disciplines." Current Anthropology
· Sydel Silverman Introduction Current Anthropology, Vol. 33, No. 1, Supplement: Inquiry and Debate in the Human Sciences: Contributions from Current Anthropology, 1960-1990 (Feb., 1992)
· Wheeler, Stephen (1998). "Planning Sustainable and Livable Cities", Routledge; 3rd edition
· The City is the Frontier, Charles Abrams, Harper & Row Publishing, New York, 1965.