1st Edition

Routledge Revivals: Theories of Planning and Spatial Development (1983)

Edited By Philip Cooke Copyright 1983
    308 Pages
    by Routledge

    308 Pages
    by Routledge

    First published in 1983, this book attempts to unify two bodies of theory which had become severely disjointed. Theories of the planning process had become detached from those of the urban and regional processes which are the subject of planning intervention. The author argues that major weaknesses of planning intervention in cities and regions have resulted from this split, and shows how it is possible to develop an integrated theory of the relationship between planning and spatial development.

    The mechanism which helps to unify the two fields is the division of labour. This poses problems for the planning system as its spatial requirements change but it depends upon the state planning framework in order to overcome those obstacles — hindering its capacity for spatial reorganisation. This book offers a thorough analysis of these obstacles and requirements by references to contemporaneous theoretical advances in the study of the development process, the state (especially at sub-national level), and the labour market. It is argued that the way capital makes use of urban and regional space can be explained by using the theoretical framework which is developed and, on this basis, point to certain innovative ways in which the processes underlying urban and regional de-industrialisation may be countered.

    1 Introduction; 2 Alternative assumptions of planning theories; Introduction: epistemological considerations Positivism Idealism Rationalism The normative and the positive Distinctive assumptions for theorizing planning Summary; 3 Marginalist theories of planning; Introduction Unitary modes Atomistic modes Conclusions; 4 Planning and consensus: a review of the critics; Introduction: scientific management and rationality in planning Undermining the consensus in British planning Simmie, Bailey and sociological conflict theory Harvey and the critique of liberal pragmatism Fragmentation in social science Flaws in liberal integration Conclusions; 5 The Berkeley school: structural-functional planning theory; Introduction Values, functions and spatial structures Functionalist principles in planning practice Problems with structural functionalism as a planning theory; 6 Theories of development processes I; Introductions: evaluation criteria Theories of regional development Regional disequilibrium theories Keynesian regional development models; 7 Theories of development processes II; Urban development theories Core-periphery theories Unequal exchange theories Capital logic theories; 8 The state, the local state and development planning; Theories of the state Theories of the local state Specificity and autonomy Levels of planning and spheres of struggle; 9 Labour markets, local classes and development planning; Theories of labour market differentiation Spatially differentiated labour markets Class structure and class relations Development planning and socio-spatial recomposition; 10 Planning and spatial development: some deductions and connections; Some deductions for planning Planning of socially-useful production Recent theories of planning Planning and spatial development: a conceptual framework; Notes; References; Index