STEEPVL and Structural Analysis as a Tools Supporting Identification of the Driving Forces of City Development

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the article is to verify the possibility of using the Social, Technological, Economic, Ecological, Political, Values and Legal analysis (STEEPVL) and structural analysis in the process of determining the driving forces of city (town) development. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research process incorporated two major methods: STEEPVL and structural analysis as well as five auxiliary ones: desk research, expert panel, citizen panel, brainstorming, survey research. The research process was carried out in the town of Zambrow in Poland with the involvement of a wide range of local stakeholders. Findings: The results obtained in the research process for the town of Zambrow confirm the validity of applying the STEEPVL analysis and structural analysis in the process of determining the driving forces of city development. As a result of the conducted research process two key factors were identified efficiency of town authorities, and entrepreneurship of town inhabitants, which may constitute the driving forces of the development of the town of Zambrow. Practical Implications: The areas studied in the article may become a useful source of knowledge for researchers and city authorities looking for new tools in the context of building urban development strategies. Originality/Value: The research focuses on the application of a new approach to the identification of the driving forces of urban development with the use of STEEPVL and structural analyses – methods belonging to the catalogue of foresight methods. A wide range of town development stakeholders is involved in the research process, thanks to which the obtained results constitute a socialised, jointly developed basis for building a vision of its development.