IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/urbstu/v40y2003i1p7-22.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Linking Discourse and Space: Towards a Cultural Sociology of Space in Analysing Spatial Policy Discourses

Author

Listed:
  • Tim Richardson

    (Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK, tim.richardson@sheffield.ac.uk)

  • Ole B. Jensen

    (Department of Development and Planning, Aalborg University, Fibigerstraede 11, DK-9220 Aalborg, Denmark, obj@i4.auc.dk)

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to explore how spatialities are 'constructed' in spatial policy discourses and to explore how these construction processes might be conceptualised and analysed. To do this, we discuss a theoretical and analytical framework for the discourse analysis of socio-spatial relations. Our approach follows the path emerging within planning research focusing on the relations between rationality and power, making use of discourse analytics and cultural theoretical approaches to articulate a cultural sociology of space. We draw on a variety of theoretical sources from critical geography to sociology to argue for a practice- and culture-oriented understanding of the spatiality of social life. The approach hinges on the dialectical relation between material practices and the symbolic meanings that social agents attach to their spatial environment. Socio-spatial relations are conceptualised in terms of their practical 'workings' and their symbolic 'meaning', played out at spatial scales from the body to the global-thus giving notion to an analysis of the 'politics of scale'. The discourse analytical approach moves away from textually oriented approaches to explore the relations between language, space and power. In the paper, we use examples of the articulation of space in the emerging field of European spatial policy. It is shown how the new spatial policy discourse creates the conditions for a new set of spatial practices which shape European space, at the same time as it creates a new system of meaning about that space, based on the language and ideas of polycentricity and hypermobility.

Suggested Citation

  • Tim Richardson & Ole B. Jensen, 2003. "Linking Discourse and Space: Towards a Cultural Sociology of Space in Analysing Spatial Policy Discourses," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 40(1), pages 7-22, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:40:y:2003:i:1:p:7-22
    DOI: 10.1080/00420980220080131
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1080/00420980220080131
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/00420980220080131?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. Andreas Faludi, 2001. "The Application of the European Spatial Development Perspective: Evidence from the North-West Metropolitan Area," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(5), pages 663-675, July.
    2. Ole Jensen & Tim Richardson, 2001. "Nested Visions: New Rationalities of Space in European Spatial Planning," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(8), pages 703-717.
    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. Weifeng Guo & Xiangmin Zheng & Fang Meng & Xiaonan Zhang, 2019. "The Evolution of Cultural Space in a World Heritage Site: Tourism Sustainable Development of Mount Wuyi, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-17, July.
    2. Marie-Claude Bélis-Bergouignan & Elie Brugarolas, 2010. "Building research and technology (R&T) transregional networks through an Interreg IIIB project," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 2(2), pages 135-155, November.

    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. lain Deas & Alex Lord, 2006. "From a New Regionalism to an Unusual Regionalism? The Emergence of Non-standard Regional Spaces and Lessons for the Territorial Reorganisation of the State," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 43(10), pages 1847-1877, September.
    2. Gordon Dabinett, 2010. "Spatial Justice and the Translation of European Strategic Planning Ideas in the Urban Sub-region of South Yorkshire," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 47(11), pages 2389-2408, October.
    3. Geoff Vigar & Stephen Graham & Patsy Healey, 2005. "In Search of the City in Spatial Strategies: Past Legacies, Future Imaginings," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 42(8), pages 1391-1410, July.
    4. Alison Caffyn & Margareta Dahlstrom, 2005. "Urban-rural interdependencies: Joining up policy in practice," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(3), pages 283-296.
    5. Willem K. Korthals Altes, 2002. "Local Government and the Decentralisation of Urban Regeneration Policies in The Netherlands," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 39(8), pages 1439-1452, July.
    6. Patsy Healey, 2002. "On Creating the 'City' as a Collective Resource," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 39(10), pages 1777-1792, September.
    7. Toni Ahlqvist, 2014. "Building Innovation Excellence of World Class: The Cluster as an Instrument of Spatial Governance in the European Union," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(5), pages 1712-1731, September.
    8. Peter Roberts, 2002. "The Scottish strategic and spatial context for sustainable development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 10(3), pages 131-139.
    9. Knowles, Richard D. & Matthiessen, Christian W., 2009. "Barrier effects of international borders on fixed link traffic generation: the case of Øresundsbron," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 155-165.
    10. Wil Zonneveld, 2005. "Multiple Visioning: New Ways of Constructing Transnational Spatial Visions," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 23(1), pages 41-62, February.
    11. Sykes, Olivier John, 2002. "Evaluating the application of the European spatial development perspective in the United Kingdom: Methodological considerations and emerging trends," ERSA conference papers ersa02p425, European Regional Science Association.
    12. Ruth Stevenson, 2009. "Discourse, Power, and Energy Conflicts: Understanding Welsh Renewable Energy Planning Policy," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 27(3), pages 512-526, June.
    13. Ritchie, Heather & Hardy, Maelíosa & Lloyd, M. Greg & McGreal, Stanley, 2013. "Big Pylons: Mixed signals for transmission. Spatial planning for energy distribution," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 311-320.
    14. Cecilia Wong & Mark Baker & Brian Webb & Stephen Hincks & Andreas Schulze-Baing, 2015. "Mapping policies and programmes: the use of GIS to communicate spatial relationships in England," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 42(6), pages 1020-1039, November.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:urbstu:v:40:y:2003:i:1:p:7-22. 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: http://www.gla.ac.uk/departments/urbanstudiesjournal .

    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.