Studies in Segregation and Desegregation

THE INCREASING INTEREST in identity and ethnicity studies in social science has increased interest in the study of socio-spatial segregation. The aim of measuring segregation is to examine spatial distributions of the population according to a variety of features. The study of segregation has stimulated much debate in the field of geography, compounded by the recent increase in social heterogeneity, ethnicity and sociocultural identities in globalized spaces.

In the 1990s, new elements were brought into the discussion on segregation, including the formation of social identity and a sense of territoriality through the practices of daily life. Further discussion has been devoted to the impact of globalization on segregation, poverty and policy. These issues are the main subject of this book. The first part of the book investigates recent innovative ideas concerning the study of segregation in cities undergoing globalization. Segregation is treated as human behaviour that should be analyzed in terms of individual or household decision making, to be understood not only in terms of the residential space of agents but also in terms of their everyday life circulation space. The second part of the book raises questions concerning the associations between segregation, poverty and policies in three European cities and in the USA.

The third and final part of the book highlights case studies of patterns of segregation and desegregation in three countries, namely South Africa, China and Canada – each of which represents different aspects of multi-culturality and transformation.