Planning Theory Research Articles

Академик АН СССР А. Н. Ефимов: истоки интеллектуальной биографии

Anatoly Efimov, a Soviet academician, exerted a significant influence on the theory, methodo­logy, and practice of long-term planning and forecasting for the national economy during his leadership at the Research Institute of Economics under the State Planning Commission of the USSR in Moscow. However, his foundational years as a scholar and organizer unfolded in Sverdlovsk. This article seeks to explore the early stages of his intellectual journey. Methodologically, the study employs the intellectual history approach, intertwining the history of ideas with an analysis of contextual factors that shaped the emergence, institutionalization, and development of specific viewpoints. The research relies on Efimov’s publications and archival materials from the library of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The article suggests that the backgrounds of scholars shape the creation and development of important theories or concepts. Efimov’s va­ried roles as an economist, including his work in the cooperative movement and industrial production, coupled with his positions as a teacher at the Ural Industrial Institute and the head of the Department of Economics, impacted the organization of his research, choice of topics, and the validity of his conclusions. Particularly noteworthy is Efimov’s practical orientation and steadfast connection with production.

Chaos theory in foreign policy planning

Chaos theory in foreign policy planning

МОДЕЛИРОВАНИЕ УРБАНИСТИЧЕСКОГО ПРОСТРАНСТВА ПУТЕМ ДИЗАЙН-КОДА ЦВЕТА

The article is devoted to the methodology of modeling in the design of the urban environment based on the identification of the uniqueness and identity of the territory. Rules and changes in the design code of the city, unnoticeable at first glance, contribute to the creation of a comfortable, harmonious urban environment. This article contains information about artistic and professional skills that form the idea of color harmony, the influence of color on the psychophysiological state of a person as one of the key tools for creating a balanced environment, as well as harmony, territoriality and environmental friendliness. For the administrative center of the Belgorod region – Belgorod, modeling the issue of the design code of urban space should be based on three basic principles: harmony, territoriality and environmental friendliness. The correct design of the design code includes several directions: color solutions of facades (the main color scheme of buildings is brown-beige. The color was not chosen by chance because it has a symbolic meaning in this context), the decoration of the first floors, the placement of signage, colors-lighting of buildings, festive decoration of buildings, as well as the formation of a unique architectural and landscape environment. The opportunity to use landscaping and features of the natural landscape, as well as local natural materials for construction will emphasize the naturalness of the coloristic solution returns material colors to the palette of the designer and architect. The formation of the design code of the urban environment through the semiotization of color provides for the formulation of research tasks, which consist in the analysis of modern urban planning theory and practice in order to improve the urban environment at the regional level

ON THE QUESTION OF DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF ‘ARCHITECTURAL LANDSCAPE OF THE CITY’

The article highlights the problem of the absence of a holistic concept that could fully characterise the city. The idea of studying the city as a whole organism is not new. However, urban theories usually reveal one or several aspects, and the rest remain neglected. We used the historical-genetic and systematic methods of research and considered a few city-planning and urbanistic theories in development, showing which aspects of city life they illuminate and which remain undefined. So, we analysed the chronology of stages of the development of urban planning and drew a parallel with the sequence of the emergence of architecture, urban-planning, and urban theories. Theories demonstrating the evolution of theoretical thought from the twentieth century to the present are considered to determine the problems. Therefore, the research begins with the emergence of the concept of ‘garden city’ by E. Howard, includes the study of the formation of the concepts of districts and neighbourhoods, then the change in the concept of urban planning to urbanism, the invention of the concept of the urban environment by Glazychev, and ends with modern research on this issue. The analysis of the existing theories showed that all the proposed ones do not have a comprehensive overview and study one or several aspects without taking into account others. We identified seven core aspects of the architectural landscape of the city: geological-geographical, historical-cultural, semantic, functional, scenario, phenomenological, and social. The concept of architectural landscape combines all the listed above aspects of the study of the city. We are considering that the combination of the main aspects will avoid incompleteness and fragmentation of its understanding and will allow us to see and develop a comprehension of the life of the urban organism. Therefore, this article proposes to introduce a new concept of the architectural landscape of the city that, by forming a holistic view, would help to fill in the blank spots in modern urban theory. Keywords: theory of architecture, urbanism, theory of urban planning, architectural landscape, urban environment.

Thailand’s policy vacuum: Land use planning as sites of negotiation and contestation

Drawing on the case of Thailand, this paper provides a fresh critical perspective on the purpose and practice of land use planning in the Global South. Thailand is going through a period of rapid urbanisation. Significantly such urban change is occurring most intensely in locations in which land use plans are several years out of date. From urban planning theory, the strategic zoning of land for different uses is widely acknowledged as the cornerstone of urban governance. Yet how such planning takes place, and the economic and political role and value that land itself plays is often overlooked. Through analyses of institutional structures and functions and key land use policy documents, supported with case studies of land contestation, the paper argues that the practice of land use planning opens grey space for negotiation and speculation and thereby accumulation of political power. In practice, the complicated process of planning and approval creates a vacuum period through which implementation is shaped by discretionary powers. The use of discretionary power is increasingly routinised, creating new arenas of negotiation and power. However, such formalised discretionary systems in planning and decision-making reaffirm the symbolic authority of planning agencies who produce plans that are not implemented, or necessarily intended to be implemented.

The Ecological Perspective in Nowadays’ Urban Landscape Planning in Transylvania

Abstract Nowadays’ (Transylvanian) urban landscape as a complex, built and natural, social and economic environment is undergoing a sudden and accelarated transformation. Urbanization is a defining feature of current spatial/urban metamorphosis in Transylvania, too, yet the current model of urban development profoundly alters the natural environment, often reducing biodiversity and ultimately threatening human wellbeing. Present not only in academic theory, but in a broader sense in the daily public debate for the past decades, ecological perspective has become one of the leading design principles in nowadays’ professional practice and theory in urban and spatial planning, a compulsory attribute of the contemporary mindset and (urban) landscape. Proposed research on ecological perspective in current urban (landscape) planning in Transylvania, Romania is focusing specifically on the role ecological perspective can play in understanding, the applying the more general and complex phenomenon of sustainability in the planning and management of landscapes. The idea of sustainability, the ecoregional approach are not only traditional attributes of the historical landscape, but also generators in present day development of cities around Transylvania, Romania. The ecological approach can enhance finding solutions in urgent social and environmental challanges regarding efficient management of resources, sustainable urban and spatial planning.

Finance as a form of economic planning

Recent years have seen a resurgent debate on economic planning in the age of digitalization and climate crisis and an extremely dynamic research community has formed around the theme of planning. Although the notion that “planning is already endemic in capitalism” has originally sparked the debate, the literature has mostly focused on theory and models of postcapitalist economic planning, not on how planning in capitalism actually works. Considering the financial system as one of the ways capitalism “plans,” this paper will expand on a rather dispersed series of observations by different commentators that “finance is a form of planning,” that central banks share similarities with “central planners” and that horizontal ownership across markets turns index funds into universal owners with the capacity to steer economic development. I will first argue that financialization has strongly influenced how contemporary economic planning works. Against this background, the text will then elaborate on how finance’s capacity for economic coordination makes it a potential tool for transformation towards increasing social and democratic control over the economy. In doing so, this paper connects the new debate on economic planning to the academic literature on financialization and the democratization of finance.

Algorithm for a simulation model for the selection of a rational type of vans on technological routes of the transport and recycling system for recycling of a metallurgical enterprise

The article presents an algorithm of the simulation model for selecting the rational type of trucks on the technological routes of the transport and production system of waste transportation in the conditions of a metallurgical enterprise. The study was conducted on the basis of formalized models and queuing systems theory. In the simulation, a discrete-event model of a closed queuing system was chosen as the basic model. In this model, cars are represented as requests that go through the following phases of service: loading at the temporary waste storage dump; movement to the unloading point (crushing and sorting complex); unloading raw materials to the crushing and sorting complex; returning to the loading point along the same route; servicing of vehicle breakdowns. The following data were used to build the simulation model through statistical studies of the transportation process on technological routes: vehicle loading time, vehicle unloading time, and time determined by the duration of vehicle failure. When constructing the algorithm of the simulation model, the duration of one experiment and the number of simulation experiments were determined using the methods of mathematical statistics and the theory of experiment planning. The modeling process begins with the input of the following initial data: the number of vehicle units, the average vehicle travel time, the current amount of raw materials in the crushing and sorting complex, the vehicle carrying capacity, the intensity of raw material supply to the crushing and sorting complex, the vehicle unloading time, the intensity of minor vehicle breakdowns, and the intensity of vehicle repair. The algorithm is built in accordance with the principles of special states and meets the requirements for discrete-event models. As a result of the algorithm development, it will be possible to determine the required number (types) of vehicles necessary to ensure the smooth functioning of this transport and production system, to determine the idle time coefficient and the coefficient of time losses due to technological delays of vehicles.
 Key words: modeling, simulation model, dump truck, carrying capacity, metallurgical slag, crushing and screening equipment.

МОДЕРНІЗАЦІЯ ДВОРІВ БАГАТОКВАРТИРНОЇ ЖИТЛОВОЇ ЗАБУДОВИ В УКРАЇНІ: ПЕРЕДУМОВИ ТА ЗАВДАННЯ

The article considers the main approaches and means of urban planning optimization of courtyard spaces of residential apartment buildings in the late twentieth century in various areas of urban planning theory and practice. The purpose of the article is to substantiate them for implementation in Ukraine. The research is based on a comparison of the technical indicators of residential groups in Lviv (Ukraine), Leinefelde (Germany) and Kielce (Poland). The considered theoretical works and practical approaches are grouped by conceptual approaches and means of their realization: - renovation, reconstruction and construction of new buildings (in the context of sustainable development and energy efficiency); - previous point with a significant emphasis on the development of existing and saturation of spaces with new functions necessary to fully provide for the residents of the residential area; - a complex strategy for the development of the territory. The success or appropriateness of these approaches should be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account all available factors. The method of systematizing the available knowledge about the object of research and substantiating the needs for the object based on the development of quantitative indicators is used in the work. For the detailed analysis, we chose an area in the northern part of Lviv in the area of I. Mazepa Street, I. Mykolaychuk Street, and M. Khvylovoho Street, which is currently being intensively urbanized. The level of comfort and technical condition of housing built in Ukraine at the end of the twentieth century no longer meets the requirements of the present. This also applies to the courtyard space of these houses. Based on the authors' previous experience on this topic, the authors propose the next - the main method of modernizing the courtyards of residential apartment buildings is to reduce the area of functionally inefficient territories by introducing new functions - commercial and non-commercial, as a means of revitalizing the area.

Urban park planning and design strategies based on sponge city concept

In recent years, people have increasingly attached importance to the application of sponge city theory in urban planning, but often overlooked the urban water regulation role played by urban parks. This paper analyzes the connotation and relationship between sponge cities and urban parks, lists the planning principles of urban parks, and proposes design strategies for sponge urban parks. In the planning and design process of sponge urban parks, rainwater management can be optimized by facilities, vegetation planting methods can be improved, and these can be combined with the current situation of urban parks to build a strong organizational and efficient green rainwater management system. This system not only ensures the viewing effect of the garden, but also effectively recycles and utilizes natural rainwater to form a complete sponge network, effectively promoting the construction of sustainable sponge urban parks.

The concept of “gated community” and its explication in the theory and practice of urban planning: A literature review

The research relevance is determined by expanding the meaningful boundaries of the concepts that are actively used in modern urban planning theory and practice. The study aims to reveal and understand the essence of the concept of “gated community”, identify its interrelationships with urban concepts and establish its role in the context of urban planning theory and practice. A comprehensive methodological approach based on a logical and philosophical approach and combining terminological and spatial analyses was used. The study identified the essential features of the concepts of “community” and “gated community”, as well as their relationship with other concepts related to the organisation of the living environment at the territorial level. The definition of the concept of “gated community” is expanded to include the urban planning component. The results of the study indicate that the formation of gated communities can have both a positive and negative impact on urban development. A gated community is proposed to be regarded as a group of objects characterised by a pronounced focus on internal interaction and mutual assistance between its members. Such a definition was preceded by the results of revealing the place and role of “gated communities” in the city structure, identifying the essential features of the initial concepts of “community” and “gated community”, establishing the relationship with the concepts that take place when describing the peculiarities of the organisation of the living environment at the territorial level, as well as the correspondence of the definition of a gated community to its specifics of functioning at the territorial level. It is determined that in urban planning its characteristic features are physical isolation and controlled access. It is clarified that this type of community can lead to the fragmentation of the city into smaller, separate territorial units. The practical value of this work is the possibility of considering its results in the process of developing a city development strategy for the rational organisation of the living environment. In addition, the results can help governing institutions identify the best ways to cooperate with gated communities, ensuring a balance between their needs and the requirements for preserving urban identity and sustainability

Institutional Gaps in Agonistic and Communicative Planning Theories. Critical Implications of the ‘Systemic Turn’ in Deliberative Democracy Theory

The paper critically reviews communicative and agonistic planning theories from the viewpoint of a systemic turn in deliberative democracy theory. While the approach reveals complementarities between the theories, it also argues that each theory is vulnerable to criticism because of an ‘institutional gap’. The theories are found to complement each other in addressing planning conflicts at different dimensions. Communicative planning theory deals with conflicts between different stakeholders’ interests in planning processes. Agonistic planning theory, in turn, concentrates on conflicts from a more ontological dimension, related to the (implicit) conflict between hegemonic and marginalized discourses and related identity-forming processes of inclusion and exclusion in planning policies and governance. The institutional gap of communicative planning theory is argued to reside in its focus on situational deliberation that largely ignores the institutional dimension of rules and norms of democratic conduct. Agonistic pluralism, in turn, does engage with the dimension of democratic institutions, but in an overly critical manner, making it difficult for agonistic planning theory to address the dynamic interplay between institutional reconfiguration and policy stabilization in planning. This is argued to be the institutional gap of agonistic planning theory. The paper calls for further work in the field of planning theory to incorporate a systemic approach to deliberative democracy and thereby tap into the dialectics of institutional and situational dimensions of planning.

Juristische Perspektiven auf die Idee der agonistischen Planung

Historically, the emergence of planning law and the juridification of planning in Germany did not follow any planning theory, but a logic inherent to the constitutional state. Only in small number of cases did the legislature or the judiciary adopt elements of planning theories, most of which were developed much later. Law defines itself by its strict claim to be obeyed. Therefore, the requirements of planning law may conflict with the recommendations of normative planning theories and then claim precedence over these. Nevertheless, with regard to the viability of some proposals of agonistic planning theories, legal borderlines arise. This paper deals with these borderlines. However, the goal of agonistic theories of planning coincides with the basic function of planning law to pacify conflicting interests and to reach acceptable solutions. Opponents of state planning projects thus are entitled to participate in planning procedures and to file far-reaching lawsuits. However, the legal order also sets limits to legitimate resistance to democratic planning and cannot refrain from distinguishing between legitimate and illegitimate forms of rejection.

Peer support interventions in maternal and child healthcare delivery in sub-Saharan Africa: protocol for a realist review

BackgroundPeer support has been proposed as a promising policy intervention for addressing adverse maternal and child healthcare (MCH) outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Existing reviews on peer support largely draw on evidence from high-income countries or focus on single services like breastfeeding, nutrition or postnatal care. In contrast, this review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the empirical literature on peer support interventions across various MCH services in sub-Saharan Africa. Specifically, we aim to understand how, why, for whom, and in what circumstances different forms of MCH peer support interventions contribute to improving healthcare outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsThis review follows five iterative steps for undertaking realist reviews (1) defining the review scope; (2) developing initial programme theories; (3) searching for evidence; (4) selecting and appraising evidence; and (5) extracting, analysing and synthesising evidence. Four databases–Cochrane Library, PubMed, CINAHL, and EMBASE–were repeatedly searched between March and June 2021. From a large volume of records retrieved from the database and citation search, 61 papers have been selected for review. We will conduct a second search of the same database covering June 2021 to the present before the final extraction and synthesis. The final list of selected papers will be imported into NVivo 12 software and organised, extracted, analysed and synthesised iteratively to examine and illustrate the causal links between contexts, mechanisms and outcomes of MCH peer support interventions in SSA. We have drawn on the existing literature on peer support in healthcare generally to develop initial programme theories. We will then use the empirical literature on MCH peer support interventions in SSA, inputs from a stakeholders’ workshop in Ghana and a conference presentation to refine the initial programme theory.DiscussionThe review will develop an explicit theory of peer support intervention in healthcare delivery and provide insights for developing evidence-informed policy on the intervention. Drawing lessons from the different national contexts and diverse areas of MCH in SSA, the review will provide an analytically generalizable programme theory that can guide intervention design and implementation. While focusing on MCH peer support interventions in SSA, the review contributes to evolving conversations on the use of theory for health policy planning and complex intervention design and implementation globally.Trial registrationPROSPERO registration ID: CRD42023427751.

Assessing Urban Resilience with Geodesign: A Case Study of Urban Landscape Planning in Belgrade, Serbia

Resilient cities have emerged as novel urban ecosystems that respond to the increasing challenges of contemporary urban development. A new methodological approach is needed to measure and assess the degree of resilience of the urban landscape during the ongoing planning process, considering different planning and design scenarios. Based on this consideration, the first attempt of this study was to develop a resilience index that summarizes the application of resilience theory in urban landscape planning. Is geodesign an appropriate tool to assess urban resilience? This was the main research question and the topic of the workshop ’’IGC—Resilient City of Belgrade’’ at the Faculty of Forestry, University of Belgrade (Master Landscape Studio). The main result of this research is a model for urban resilience assessment with IGC geodesign, which allows to measure scenario changes through developed resilience indicators (index), which are determined by a set of parameters (area, redundancy, diversity, porosity, carbon sequestration, edge type, edge length, etc.). The methodological approach allows quantifying the impact of adopted innovations in geodesign scenario proposals, which plays a crucial role in strengthening the connection between landscape planning and design. In the context of the novel urban ecosystem, future urban landscape planning should focus on resilience as a measure to achieve sustainable development goals, supported by geodesign as a collaborative and spatially explicit negotiation tool.

A framework for identifying multiscenario priorities based on SCP theory to promote the implementation of municipal territorial ecological conservation planning policy in China

Currently, research on the methodological framework for identifying conservation priority areas in China's territorial ecological conservation planning pays limited attention to the plan's implementability. Therefore, in this study, we developed a new prioritization framework for planning implementation based on systematic conservation planning (SCP) theory, which not only incorporated multiple types of key indicators for conservation prioritization assessment but also provided managers with differentiated decision-making scenarios, including the use of the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model, the Marxan model, and the Zonation model. We applied the framework in Xi'an, a megacity in northwest China. To evaluate the effectiveness of the new framework, a comparison was made between two scenarios: the systematic conservation planning scenarios (SCPs) based on the new framework and the ecologically important scenarios (EIs) based on the previous main methodology (which integrates the level of ecosystem service provision and ecological vulnerability). Under SCPs and EIs, the areas of conservation priority are 2,118.35 km2 and 4,447.15 km2, respectively, and SCPs gained slightly fewer conservation benefits than EIs but caused less loss of economic benefits in terms of GDP (27.8884 million yuan and 494.3732 million yuan for SCPs and EIs, respectively). This shows that the new framework can help minimize conservation costs while satisfying each conservation benefit as much as possible compared to previous approaches, thus contributing to the implementability of the plan. In future works, the application scenarios of the multiscenario prioritization framework based on SCP theory can be further expanded, and flexible solutions can be provided for the implementation of landscape planning in similar areas facing urgent conservation needs.

A New Pathway towards Retirement Preparation: Integration of Holistic Life Planning

Abstract This is a concept paper to review the needs of holistic life planning as a new pathway towards retirement preparation. It is based on the review of literature on the importance of this knowledge to fulfil individual successful planning and preparation for retirement. It includes the review on a planning process theory by Friedman and Scholnick (1997) which provides the basis for generation of retirement preparation. Meanwhile Hansen’s Integrative Live Planning (ILP) theory is embedded within the theoretical framework to help better understanding on the domains of planning and preparation for retirement. The purpose is to develop a theoretical model for measuring employees’ retirement preparation in government organizations. The primary problem in retirement preparation is the lack of theory to show the development of retirement preparation process. Although prior research has theories explained on retirement thoughts, behaviors, attitudes or goals undertaken to fulfill the retirement preparation, none of it measures applied in the studies were established to directly test the theories according to the process and development of retirement. According to the process theory, individuals acquire an understanding of the problem, goals will be set in making a decision to start preparing and finally behaviors is considered necessary to fulfil the goals (Noone et al., 2009). This raises intriguing questions: What factors influence retirement preparation? Which stages in retirement planning and preparation require intervention and support? (Noone et al., 2009) Which domain in life is significant to retirement preparation? The theory is discussed throughout the paper in the context of the needs of retirement preparation. This paper would be useful for policy makers, practitioners and employees in considering their own retirement preparation for future well-being.

Application of trait and factor theory for career planning in Class XII transitional students at Islamic Senior High School, Karimun

Career is an important thing in human life. This is because there is an urge to improve in life. One alternative solution to help someone who has difficulty making career decisions is through the application of trait and factor theory. Trait and factor theory is a career counseling theory that views the right career choice when there is a match between the client's nature and job or position factors. This research is a descriptive qualitative research. The research was conducted at MAN Karimun. The research informants were 1 counseling teacher and 3 transitional class XII students. This study aims to examine in depth the application of trait and factor theory in the career planning of class XII students in the transition period at MAN Karimun. The results of the study show that the application of trait and factor career counseling theory can be an alternative solution to assist clients in planning and making career decisions.

SUBSTANTIATION OF A GENERALIZED MODEL OF THE FUNCTIONING OF A PROMISING INFORMATION AND MEASUREMENT SYSTEM FOR COLLECTING AND PROCESSING INFORMATION

The level of development of the defense sector directly depends on the degree of accumulation of knowledge in the latest technologies and the efficiency of this process, since the accumulation of the results of yesterday's scientific achievements cannot bring the state to new high technologies today or in the future.
 With the ever-increasing amount of information to be processed to make effective decisions, as well as the shrinking time to make a decision (this is especially true for systems operating in real time), the use of automation tools in the era of armament systems development is a necessity.
 The use of the mathematical theory of research planning allows us to develop a coherent logical scheme and develop optimal conditions for solving all stages of determining the movement of an air object.
 Based on the results of measurement processing and analysis, the correctness of the object's functioning is assessed. These operations are interdependent. If the experiment reveals a malfunction, an additional analysis is performed to localize the defects and determine their causes, after which appropriate modifications are made to the facility and, if necessary, changes are made to the test program and methodology.
 The concept of a mathematical model is now widely used to describe the processes occurring in complex technical systems. A mathematical model is built on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the system's behavior and extensive use of statistical research results. It must be complete enough to adequately describe the system, but also simple enough to allow the resulting algorithms to be implemented on electronic computers.
 In addition, in order to perform measurement processing, i.e. to obtain estimates of measured values, and the experiment as a whole, to determine the estimation of characteristics describing the object, it is necessary to know the structure and statistical characteristics of the signal that is being processed. Measurement information can be a continuous random process, a discrete random process, a continuous or discrete random sequence. The measurement information of a multidimensional information and measurement system is described in the form of discrete random sequences.

Wicked facets of the German energy transition – examples from the electricity, heating, transport, and industry sectors

ABSTRACT We shed light on wicked problems in the German energy transition. Our methods consist of a multiple-case study and multi-criteria analysis, utilising the wicked problems theoretical framework introduced by Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber [1973. “Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning.” Policy Sciences 4 (2): 155–169. Accessed August 20, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01405730]. Results from the energy supply, heating/cooling, transport, and industry sectors illustrate where and how the 10-point frame of wicked problems manifests in the German energy transition. The four cases exhibit more wicked tendencies in the governance domain than the technical domain and differ in their degrees of technology maturity, policy regulation, and knowledge states. We do not find that the German energy transition is inherently wicked. However, wickedness unfolds through the social setting into which technical solutions of the energy transition are embedded. We aim to highlight these intricacies and encourage scrutinising these wicked facets early on.