436
D. Vanegas and M. Bose
3 The Study
The relationship between urban form and social outcomes such as social sustainability, resident satisfaction, and social capital has been examined in several studies
(Bramley and Power 2009; Howley et al. 2009; Addo 2016; Brueckner and Largey
2008), with the overall conclusion that the built form has a significant effect on all
these outcomes. In some studies, positive correlations have been found between residential satisfaction and aspects of urban form such as density (Bramley and Power
2009). However, other studies show that it is not high density per se that is the source
of dissatisfaction for respondents, but rather related factors such as poor environmental quality, a high level of noise, a high level of traffic, a lack of community
involvement, and a lack of services and facilities (Howley et al. 2009). Even though
RS in low-income areas in developing countries has been examined in some studies
(for example Addo 2016), we did not find any such studies that compare the effects
of the specific urban form of formal housing or informal housing in developing
countries.
As informal settlements provide housing for the majority of low-income groups
in developing countries and as governments are also involved in the provision of lowincome housing through the formal sector, in this study we are principally interested
in residents’ views of and experiences in neighborhoods of both formal and informal
origin. We used a validated self-report tool, the Perceived Residential Environmental
Quality Indicators (PREQI) (Fornara et al. 2010) to capture the participants’ perceptions of their residential environment. This tool measures subjective environmental
quality reflecting a user-centered approach intended to complement objective measures such as density, land use, tenure, and mix of land uses.
Specifically, we present an analysis of the effects that neighborhood origin (formal/informal) has on RS in low-income areas in Bogotá, Colombia. We hypothesize
that a difference in RS exists between residents of low-income neighborhoods of
informal and formal origin. We hypothesize further that of these two groups, residents of neighborhoods of informal origin should report a higher RS due to the
community participation intrinsic in the production of their neighborhoods. Thus,
we designed the study to address two research questions:
1. Does neighborhood origin have an impact on RS in low-income communities in
Bogotá, Colombia?
2. If it does, what are the main factors of formal origin neighborhoods and informal
origin neighborhoods that impact RS?
We base our analysis on primary data collected in 2017 from four formal origin
and three informal origin low-income neighborhoods in Bogotá for a total sample of
531 participants.
D. Vanegas and M. Bose
3 The Study
The relationship between urban form and social outcomes such as social sustainability, resident satisfaction, and social capital has been examined in several studies
(Bramley and Power 2009; Howley et al. 2009; Addo 2016; Brueckner and Largey
2008), with the overall conclusion that the built form has a significant effect on all
these outcomes. In some studies, positive correlations have been found between residential satisfaction and aspects of urban form such as density (Bramley and Power
2009). However, other studies show that it is not high density per se that is the source
of dissatisfaction for respondents, but rather related factors such as poor environmental quality, a high level of noise, a high level of traffic, a lack of community
involvement, and a lack of services and facilities (Howley et al. 2009). Even though
RS in low-income areas in developing countries has been examined in some studies
(for example Addo 2016), we did not find any such studies that compare the effects
of the specific urban form of formal housing or informal housing in developing
countries.
As informal settlements provide housing for the majority of low-income groups
in developing countries and as governments are also involved in the provision of lowincome housing through the formal sector, in this study we are principally interested
in residents’ views of and experiences in neighborhoods of both formal and informal
origin. We used a validated self-report tool, the Perceived Residential Environmental
Quality Indicators (PREQI) (Fornara et al. 2010) to capture the participants’ perceptions of their residential environment. This tool measures subjective environmental
quality reflecting a user-centered approach intended to complement objective measures such as density, land use, tenure, and mix of land uses.
Specifically, we present an analysis of the effects that neighborhood origin (formal/informal) has on RS in low-income areas in Bogotá, Colombia. We hypothesize
that a difference in RS exists between residents of low-income neighborhoods of
informal and formal origin. We hypothesize further that of these two groups, residents of neighborhoods of informal origin should report a higher RS due to the
community participation intrinsic in the production of their neighborhoods. Thus,
we designed the study to address two research questions:
1. Does neighborhood origin have an impact on RS in low-income communities in
Bogotá, Colombia?
2. If it does, what are the main factors of formal origin neighborhoods and informal
origin neighborhoods that impact RS?
We base our analysis on primary data collected in 2017 from four formal origin
and three informal origin low-income neighborhoods in Bogotá for a total sample of
531 participants.