The Pentagon Model of Urban Social Sustainability: An Assessment of Sociospatial Aspects, Comparing Two Neighborhoods

Abstract

Social concerns have caused a critical rethinking of urban space in today’s society, with sociospatial issues at the forefront of discussions. This study aims to better understand the relationship between sociospatial aspects of urban space and social sustainability. We provide a pentagon model for urban social sustainability by identifying five dimensions: person (demographic and household characteristics), place (accessibility, social infrastructure, open spaces, and places for daily operations), people (sense of community, social relations, and social network), perception (sense of place, and security and safety), and process (participation, and future of space). The research methodology includes a spatial analysis, questionnaire survey, and statistical analyses, applied to two study areas in Izmir, Turkey. The findings show that the two study areas have significantly different scores in terms of social sustainability criteria. Residents who reported their neighborhood as being more accessible and having better places for daily operations indicated a higher sense of place and participation. Residents who rated their open spaces more highly reported better social relations and social networks, and greater security and safety. In addition, there are a variety of positive associations between indicators of social sustainability. The study summarizes the relationship between social sustainability indicators, followed by a discussion.