IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/envirb/v48y2021i4p621-637.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Measuring urban social sustainability: Scale development and validation

Author

Listed:
  • Taimaz Larimian

    (5156Loughborough University, UK)

  • Arash Sadeghi

    (1722Aston University, UK)

Abstract

Despite the significant role of social sustainability in the sustainable development agenda, there is a lack of research to clearly define and fully operationalise the concept of urban social sustainability. The aim of this study is to contribute to the existing literature by developing a comprehensive measurement scale to assess urban social sustainability at the neighbourhood level. We argue that urban social sustainability is a multidimensional concept that incorporates six main dimensions of social interaction, sense of place, social participation, safety, social equity and neighbourhood satisfaction. Failure to consider each of these dimensions may lead to an incomplete picture of social sustainability. Validity, reliability and dimensionality of the urban social sustainability scale are examined using factor analysis. We also illustrate the application of the urban social sustainability scale by investigating the influence of quality of design, as one of the least studied factors of urban form, on different dimensions of social sustainability. The paper uses data collected from the household questionnaire survey in a sample of 251 respondents from five case study neighbourhoods of Dunedin city, New Zealand. This study provides new evidence on the significance of improving neighbourhood quality of design and its positive and significant relationship with different dimensions of social sustainability and the overall social sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • Taimaz Larimian & Arash Sadeghi, 2021. "Measuring urban social sustainability: Scale development and validation," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 48(4), pages 621-637, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envirb:v:48:y:2021:i:4:p:621-637
    DOI: 10.1177/2399808319882950
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2399808319882950
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/2399808319882950?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Seema Dave, 2011. "Neighbourhood density and social sustainability in cities of developing countries," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(3), pages 189-205, May/June.
    2. Efrat Eizenberg & Yosef Jabareen, 2017. "Social Sustainability: A New Conceptual Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-16, January.
    3. Michael Grillo & Miguel Teixeira & David Wilson, 2010. "Residential Satisfaction and Civic Engagement: Understanding the Causes of Community Participation," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 97(3), pages 451-466, July.
    4. Nicola Dempsey & Glen Bramley & Sinéad Power & Caroline Brown, 2011. "The social dimension of sustainable development: Defining urban social sustainability," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(5), pages 289-300, September.
    5. Esperanza Vera-Toscano & Victoria Ateca-Amestoy, 2008. "The relevance of social interactions on housing satisfaction," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 86(2), pages 257-274, April.
    6. Grzeskowiak, Stephan & Sirgy, M. Joseph & Widgery, Robin, 2003. "Residents' Satisfaction with Community Services: Predictors and Outcomes," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 33(2), pages 1-36.
    7. Edwin Chan & Grace Lee, 2008. "Critical factors for improving social sustainability of urban renewal projects," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 85(2), pages 243-256, January.
    8. Beate Littig & Erich Griessler, 2005. "Social sustainability: a catchword between political pragmatism and social theory," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 8(1/2), pages 65-79.
    9. Russell James, 2008. "Residential Satisfaction of Elderly Tenants in Apartment Housing," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 89(3), pages 421-437, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. R. Rajesh, 2023. "Grey Markov Models for Predicting the Social Sustainability Performances of Firms," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 168(1), pages 297-351, August.
    2. Nagalingam Nagendrakumar & Kalubowilage Navodya Nilupulee Alwis & Udage Arachchige Kaveesha Eshani & Seekku Baduge Ushani Kaushalya, 2022. "The Impact of Sustainability Practices on the Going Concern of the Travel and Tourism Industry: Evidence from Developed and Developing Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-21, December.
    3. Massoomeh Hedayati Marzbali & Aldrin Abdullah & Mohammad Javad Maghsoodi Tilaki & Mina Safizadeh, 2021. "Moving the 2030 Agenda Ahead: Exploring the Role of Multiple Mediators toward Perceived Environment and Social Sustainability in Residential Neighbourhoods," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-18, October.
    4. Dorota Mantey, 2021. "Objective and Subjective Determinants of Neighborhood Satisfaction in the Context of Retrofitting Suburbs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-19, October.
    5. Hongjik Kim & Chihiro Shimizu, 2022. "The Relationship between Geographic Accessibility to Neighborhood Facilities, Remote Work, and Changes in Neighborhood Satisfaction after the Emergence of the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-20, August.
    6. Seyda Akcali & Arzu Cahantimur, 2022. "The Pentagon Model of Urban Social Sustainability: An Assessment of Sociospatial Aspects, Comparing Two Neighborhoods," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-24, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jubril Olakitan Atanda & Ayşe Öztürk, 2020. "Social criteria of sustainable development in relation to green building assessment tools," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 61-87, January.
    2. Tafuro, Alessandra & De Matteis, Fabio & Preite, Daniela & Costa, Antonio & Mariella, Leonardo & Treviso, Giuliana, 2019. "Social sustainability and local authorities: What is the relationship between spending commitments and social issues?," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 120-132.
    3. Massoomeh Hedayati Marzbali & Aldrin Abdullah & Mohammad Javad Maghsoodi Tilaki & Mina Safizadeh, 2021. "Moving the 2030 Agenda Ahead: Exploring the Role of Multiple Mediators toward Perceived Environment and Social Sustainability in Residential Neighbourhoods," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-18, October.
    4. Chisun Yoo & Sugie Lee, 2016. "Neighborhood Built Environments Affecting Social Capital and Social Sustainability in Seoul, Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(12), pages 1-22, December.
    5. Bonnie Averbuch & Martin Hvarregaard Thorsøe & Chris Kjeldsen, 2022. "Using fuzzy cognitive mapping and social capital to explain differences in sustainability perceptions between farmers in the northeast US and Denmark," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(1), pages 435-453, March.
    6. Sultana Razia & Siti Hajar Abu Bakar Ah, 2023. "Model of social sustainability for Dhaka city, Bangladesh," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, December.
    7. Barbieri, Elisa & Di Tommaso, Marco R. & Pollio, Chiara & Rubini, Lauretta, 2020. "Getting the specialization right. Industrialization in Southern China in a sustainable development perspective," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    8. Jerome Ballet & Damien Bazin & François‐Regis Mahieu, 2020. "A policy framework for social sustainability: Social cohesion, equity and safety," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(5), pages 1388-1394, September.
    9. Hossein Farhadikhah & Keramatollah Ziari, 2021. "Social sustainability between old and new neighborhoods (case study: Tehran neighborhoods)," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 2596-2613, February.
    10. Yafei Liu & Martin Dijst & Stan Geertman & Can Cui, 2017. "Social Sustainability in an Ageing Chinese Society: Towards an Integrative Conceptual Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-15, April.
    11. Nagamani Subramanian & M. Suresh, 2022. "Social Sustainability Factors Influencing the Implementation of Sustainable HRM in Manufacturing SMEs," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 7(3), pages 469-507, December.
    12. Kosa Golić & Vesna Kosorić & Siu-Kit Lau, 2020. "A Framework for Early Stages of Socially Sustainable Renovation of Multifamily Buildings with Occupants’ Participation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-22, October.
    13. Gu, Zhonghua & Zhang, Xiaoling, 2021. "Framing social sustainability and justice claims in urban regeneration: A comparative analysis of two cases in Guangzhou," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    14. R. Rajesh, 2023. "Grey Markov Models for Predicting the Social Sustainability Performances of Firms," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 168(1), pages 297-351, August.
    15. Luise L Langergaard, 2019. "Interpreting ‘the social’: Exploring processes of social sustainability in Danish nonprofit housing," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 34(5), pages 456-470, August.
    16. Ümran Duman & Buket Asilsoy, 2022. "Developing an Evidence-Based Framework of Universal Design in the Context of Sustainable Urban Planning in Northern Nicosia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-31, October.
    17. Ionuț Viorel Herghiligiu & Ioan-Bogdan Robu & Marinela Istrate & Maria Grosu & Camelia Cătălina Mihalciuc & Adrian Vilcu, 2023. "Sustainable Corporate Performance Based on Audit Report Influence: An Empirical Approach through Financial Transparency and Gender Equality Dimensions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-28, September.
    18. Lucia Corsini & James Moultrie, 2019. "Design for Social Sustainability: Using Digital Fabrication in the Humanitarian and Development Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-20, June.
    19. Francesco Polese & Carmen Gallucci & Luca Carrubbo & Rosalia Santulli, 2021. "Predictive Maintenance as a Driver for Corporate Sustainability: Evidence from a Public-Private Co-Financed R&D Project," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-21, May.
    20. Cuesta Leiva,Jose Antonio & Madrigal Correa,Alma Lucia & Pecorari,Natalia Gisel, 2022. "Social Sustainability, Poverty, and Income : An Empirical Exploration," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10085, The World Bank.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:envirb:v:48:y:2021:i:4:p:621-637. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.