Urban Studies Inside Out

At a time of intense theoretical debates in urban studies, the research practices underlying such theories have not received the same attention. This original and creative text interrogates the methodological underpinnings of contemporary urban scholarship, with reference to different global sites and situations, as well as to recent debates around postcolonial, planetary, and provincialized urban theories. Rather than reducing methodological questions to a matter of tools and techniques, it unearths the complex connections between theory, research design, empirical work, expositional style, and normative-ethical commitments. Innovatively co-produced by faculty and graduate students from a variety of disciplines, Urban Studies Inside-Out it is comprised of three parts. Part I: An introduction to the field of urban studies and its changing theories, methodological norms and practices. Part II: Features a collection of methodological essays co-authored by graduate students, deconstructing the research designs, the methodological practices, and the modes of presentation and representation across recent urban monographs. Part III: Consists of informative keyword primers which explicate the key concepts and formulations in the field of urban studies. This volume offers a welcome intervention within urban studies, and stands to make a valuable contribution for graduate students and researchers.

At a time of intense theoretical debates in urban studies, the research practices underlying such theories have not received the same attention. This original and creative text interrogates the methodological underpinnings of contemporary urban scholarship, with reference to different global sites and situations, as well as to recent debates around postcolonial, planetary, and provincialized urban theories. Rather than reducing methodological questions to a matter of tools and techniques, it unearths the complex connections between theory, research design, empirical work, expositional style, and normative-ethical commitments. Innovatively co-produced by faculty and graduate students from a variety of disciplines, Urban Studies Inside-Out it is comprised of three parts. • Part I: An introduction to the field of urban studies and its changing theories, methodological norms and practices. • Part II: Features a collection of methodological essays co-authored by graduate students, deconstructing the research designs, the methodological practices, and the modes of presentation and representation across recent urban monographs. • Part III: Consists of informative keyword primers which explicate the key concepts and formulations in the field of urban studies. This volume offers a welcome intervention within urban studies, and stands to make a valuable contribution for graduate students and researchers.

This practical guide for students focuses on the city and on the different ways to research it. The authors explain how urban studies research is done, from the original idea to design and implementation, through to writing up and representation. Substantive chapters explain each method in detail, from using archival methods, interviews, ethnography, questionnaires, discourse analysis and diaries, to using GIS and visual methods. This second edition offers: · A thorough introduction to the research process · Revised and updated discussions of foundational methods · A new chapter on sensory methods · A new chapter on social media as an object or a method of studying the city. With real world examples throughout and guided further reading for each chapter, it is an inspiring guide for students carrying out their own research in urban geography, urban planning, urban sociology and urban studies.

This handbook is a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary and up-to-date account of the urban condition, and of the theories through which the structure, development and changing character of the city is understood.

Contributing to new debates and research on the city, this handbook looks both backwards and forwards to bring together key scholarship in the field

Whether you are an urban geographer, an urban sociologist or an urban political scientist, and whether you take a qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods approach, the challenge that confronts researchers of our increasingly "globalized" urban studies remains fundamentally the same—how to make sense of urban complexity. This book confronts this challenge by exploring the various methodological approaches for doing global urban research, including Comparative Urbanism, Social Network Analysis, and Data Visualization. With contributions from leading scholars across the world, Doing Global Urban Research offers a key forum to discuss how the practice of research can deepen our knowledge of globalized urbanization.

"This book pulls together an exceptional range of literature in addressing the complexity of contemporary patterns and processes of urbanization. It offers a rich array of concepts and theories and is studded with fascinating examples that illustrate the changing nature of cities and urban life" - Paul Knox, Virginia Tech University "The SAGE Companion to the City is a tour-de-force of contemporary urban studies. At once a stocktake, showcase and springboard for scholarly approaches to cities and city life, the editors have assembled a cohesive and convincing set of lucid, insightful and critical essays of great quality. Eschewing grand theory and deadening encyclopediasm, the contributors refresh both longstanding concerns and explore new themes in ways both brilliantly accessible to newcomers and satisfying to the cognoscenti." - Robert Freestone, University of New South Wales Organized in four sections The SAGE Companion to the City provides a systematic A-Z to understanding the city that explains the interrelations between society, culture and economy. Histories: explores power, religion, science and technology, modernity, and the landscape of the city. Economies and Inequalities: explores work and leisure, globalisation, innovation, and the role of the state. Communities: explores migration and settlement, segregation and division, civility, housing and homelessness. Order and Disorder: explores politics and policy, planning and conflict, law and order, surveillance and terror. An accessible guide to all areas of urban studies, the text offers both a contemporary cutting edge reflection and measured historical and geographical reflection on urban studies. It will be essential reading for students of any discipline interested in the city as an object of study.

"Key Concepts in Urban Studies is written in an accessible, concise way and introduces students to the key topics in urban studies. Drawing examples from different parts of the world, this authoritative resource exposes students to the diverse forms that cities take, and the social, spatial and temporal dimensions of urban living. It is an essential resource for students across disciplines interested in the city." - Lily Kong, Singapore Management University "An insightful multidisciplinary introduction to the multifarious places, processes and problems that constitute modern cities. Its short, digestible entries unpack the complexity and evolution of urban conditions, offering cross-references between concepts and links to key literature and to useful current and historical examples. The book’s clear, often sharp critical edge also encourages deeper enquiry." - Quentin Stevens, School of Architecture and Design, RMIT University Key Concepts in Urban Studies is an essential companion for students of urban studies, urban sociology, urban politics, urban planning and urban development. This revised edition has been updated and expanded to provide a keen global focus, particularly in emerging economies with discussions on the creation of "dream cities" in the Gulf States and a renewed emphasis on building mega-scaled "downtowns" in India and China. New features include: Contemporary and international examples throughout. Detailed entries on environmental concerns and the sustainability of urban development. Discussion of the role of consumption in city culture and urban development. New entries on modern urban planning and adaptive urbanism. Key Concepts in Urban Studies is a must-have text with an explicit focus on contemporary urbanism which students will find invaluable during their studies. Mark Gottdiener is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at The University at Buffalo (SUNY). Leslie Budd is Reader in Social Science at the Open University. Panu Lehtovuori is Professor of Planning Theory at Tampere University of Technology.