Towards resilient neighbourhood governance: social tensions in Shanghai’s gated communities before and during the pandemic

Abstract

Great attention has recently been drawn to the discussion of the resilience of neighbourhood governance as part of the response to threats such as pandemics and climate change. This article conceptualises resilient neighbourhood governance by highlighting the importance of the historical development of collaborative governance in the response mechanism during crises. The social tensions in three typical gated communities in Shanghai before and during the pandemic were empirically investigated through an event system analysis, and the findings suggest that a counterbalance game is co-played by the stakeholders within the triangular state–market–society structure in neighbourhood governance. Whereas state power, represented by the street office and residential committee, held a dominant position in the monitoring of nonstate organisations and mitigated conflicts between society and the market, civic participation, which was less conspicuous in daily management, played a substantial role in maintaining basic order and the supply of life necessities during COVID-19. The market functioned by providing professional services and transmitting information between residents and local governmental agencies. This study helps policymakers, community managers, urban planners, and urban studies researchers to form a more thorough understanding of the resilience of neighbourhood governance in both everyday life and during crisis management.