Urban theory

Urban theory describes the city formation phenomenon where economic priorities prevail to facilitate the city's propensity to generate and accumulate wealth. Such city formation involves some irreversible spatial investments, massive resource allocations and financial investments recoverable only if anticipated future income transpires. Consequently, it is a pertinent concept in urban planning. Though related, this is not to be confused with urban economics where economic principles and tools are applied at macro and micro levels. Urbanomics is to be understood as a paradigm to understand impact of the globalization process on urban development. Urban theory describes the city formation phenomenon where economic priorities prevail to facilitate the city's propensity to generate and accumulate wealth. Such city formation involves some irreversible spatial investments, massive resource allocations and financial investments recoverable only if anticipated future income transpires. Consequently, it is a pertinent concept in urban planning. Though related, this is not to be confused with urban economics where economic principles and tools are applied at macro and micro levels. Urbanomics is to be understood as a paradigm to understand impact of the globalization process on urban development. Urban theory is an agglomeration of social theories - classical, neo-classical and modern. Reference to social theory assumes the indivisibility of political, social and economic forces. Sustainability is increasingly becoming the lynch-pin of urban studies with triple-line accountability (social, environment and economics) given more emphasis though not necessarily translated to practice. Here, urbanomics, by default, renders environmental and social concerns to subservience. Theoretical discourse has often polarized between economic determinism and cultural determinism with scientific or technological determinism adding another contentious issue of reification. Studies across eastern and western nations have shown that certain cultural values promote economic development and that the economy in turn changes cultural values. Urban historians were among the first to acknowledge the importance of technology in the city. It embeds the single most dominant characteristic of a city; its networked character perpetuated by information technology. Regardless of the deterministic stance (economic, cultural or technological), in the context of globalization, there is a mandate to mold the city to complement the global economic structure and urbanomics gains ascendancy. The notion of urban’ is derived from ‘urbs’ which refers to the built city and ‘civitas’ which refers to feelings, rituals and convictions that define urban life. It connotes a dialectic relationship between materialism and ideas. This can be related to the ‘sense of place’ that Bourdieu refers to as ‘habitus’. He makes reference to symbolic capital – an appropriation of how things should be; that can be individualistic or collectively expressed. This concept has been well received in urban theory.