The Potential of Social Perception Applied to Vulnerability Analysis in Urban Planning

Abstract

Today, the role of the social perception of urban space is scarce in the documents that guide the adequate integration of the urban development of cities. A better understanding of the influence of social relationships within the city allows new knowledge to be brought to the underlying mechanisms of vulnerability and social exclusion in the urban space. This work focuses on studying the relationship between the quantitative approach of current urban vulnerability reports and a qualitative approach based on social perception, developed within the framework of the Social Risk Map of Zaragoza (Spain) research project between 2014-2017. The cartographical analysis shows that the risk of social isolation is not greater unequivocally in the areas currently characterized as vulnerable and reveals the importance of this type of research for city and urban planning activities.