Document Type : Original Article
Authors
Department of Architecture, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran
Abstract
A b s t r a c t
In recent decades, the importance of neighborhood design in realizing the principles of a “sustainable city” has become increasingly evident. The COVID-19 crisis demonstrated that urban sustainability is not limited to physical and environmental indicators, but also encompasses the social and perceptual dimensions of residents. The aim of this study was to explore the lived experience and spatial perception of residents in neighborhood units during crisis conditions and to provide a framework for urban safety design. The research method was qualitative and based on semi-structured interviews with 18 residents and experts in Ekbatan Township, Tehran. The data were coded and analyzed using thematic analysis and MAXQDA software. To increase validity, the participant review and theme comparison techniques were used. The findings showed that five main themes were most frequently repeated: the role of open and semi-public spaces in promoting social sustainability (83%), the insufficient spatial flexibility of residential units (72%), the redefinition of social relations in public spaces (67%), the importance of semi-open spaces as “rescue spaces” (56%), and the necessity of flexible urban design to face future crises (78%). These results indicate that urban sustainability depends not only on physical indicators but also on the lived experience and spatial perception of citizens. Accordingly, suggestions such as strengthening open and semi-public spaces, designing flexible housing, improving the quality of balconies and terraces, and redefining public spaces as urban resilience infrastructure are presented. The goal of the present study is not to make statistical generalizations, but rather to discover conceptual patterns of lived experience that can be used in similar urban contexts.
Introduction
The idea of the "Safe and resilient city" has emerged during the past couple of decades as a more complete approach to optimizing a city’s quality of life, spatial equity, and urban resilience view. The social aspects of urban sustainability came to the forefront during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most Iranian studies on City safety, on the other hand, remain fixated on the quantitative or the physical components while overlooking the social and psychological aspects of urban sustainability. This research intends to examine residents’ lived experiences and spatial perceptions in neighborhood units during the public health crisis to develop a conceptual framework for sustainable design to address the gap.
In the discipline of urban planning, public health crises of the recent past have shown that the neighborhood design and management paradigms in Iran are still outdated and insufficient to satisfy residents’ real needs. In this context, understanding the relationships between the physical, the semi-public, and the open spaces as a set and residents' experiences becomes crucial. This approach could advance the design of neighborhood units and support policymakers and urban designers.
Although a growing body of international research has examined the role of public space, housing flexibility and social interaction in urban resilience, there remains a marked lack of context-sensitive studies in Iran. In particular, few investigations have combined residents spatial perceptions with their lived experience during health crises to derive design and policy strategies. Addressing this gap is crucial for developing safe and sustainable neighborhood units that are not only physically robust but also socially and psychologically responsive to crises.
Methodology
This is an applied, qualitative and explanatory study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 18 participants including 12 residents of diverse socio-economic backgrounds and 6 experts in architecture, urban planning and urban health in the Ekbatan complex of Tehran. Field observations were also used to enrich the data. Data analysis was conducted through thematic analysis in both deductive and inductive phases: first, urban health and sustainability indicators extracted from the literature formed an initial coding frame; then open and axial coding of interview data was carried out. Credibility was enhanced by member checking, double coding and constant comparison. Theoretical saturation was reached after 18 interviews.
Results and discussion
The analysis revealed five main themes:
(1) the role of open and semi-public spaces in enhancing social sustainability (83% of participants);
(2) insufficiency of spatial flexibility in residential units (72%);
(3) redefinition of social relations in public spaces (67%);
(4) the importance of semi-open spaces as "rescue spaces" (56%);
(5) the necessity of flexible urban design to face future crises (78%).
Locally available open spaces, walkways, terraces, and communal yards help dispel anxiety, enable safe social contact, and improve users perceived safety. During the lockdown, the absence of dwellings with flexible and multi-function spaces increased psychological confinement and functional inefficiency. The crisis also re-evaluated the value of public and semi-open spaces and the need for the design of multi-functional, resilient spaces to crises. Most of these findings align with the literature on biophilic design, justice in space, and urban resilience, corroborating the fact that the lived experience can be translated into actionable metrics for sustainable design.
Conclusion
This qualitative research, focused on the Ekbatan residential complex, aimed to identify conceptual patterns of residents’ lived experiences and spatial perceptions under crisis conditions. While the results are not statistically generalizable due to the homogeneity of the study area, they reveal critical insights into how semi-public spaces influence social interaction, emotional security, and urban resilience. These insights can contribute to the development of design guidelines and neighborhood planning strategies applicable to other urban contexts with similar physical and social structures.
From a policy framework perspective, the findings of this study can contribute to forming design approaches in urban planning and detailed plans, provide urban managers guidelines to reinforcing social and spatial resilience in urban development programs, and facilitate the public sector in policy implementation. In policy development, the findings from the study can also provide a guide for housing and public space design at local and national levels. For the research findings to inform a broader range of context, extending the research to small cities and informal settlements is encouraged. Just as important, including these areas would help urban decision-making improve.
In addition to providing a conceptual framework, the study highlights a practical research agenda for planners, designers and policymakers. Extending this work to different types of settlements such as informal areas, small towns and peri-urban zones would allow comparative analysis of safety and resilience indicators across contexts. Such an approach could inform national standards and lead to the creation of a network of locally grounded knowledge on neighborhood safety and resilience, thereby improving the quality and transferability of urban decision-making.
Funding
There is no funding support.
Authors’ Contribution
Authors contributed equally to the conceptualization and writing of the article. All of the authors approved thecontent of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work declaration of competing interest none.
Conflict of Interest
Authors declared no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all the scientific consultants of this paper.
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