Entender el barrio, una aproximación desde las ciencias sociales

Abstract

The lack of clarity of the neighborhood concept elaborated by the social sciences has allowed this definition to be conceptualized mainly by architecture or by certain legal terms. That is to say, it´s theorized from what can be observed, ignoring the identities that the neighborhoods creates. Also, this lack of clarity brings with it the fact that the neighborhood is considered as the essence of urban reality and not as a contingent aspect, falling into the ideologization of it and treating it as the base unit of the city, conditioning it to its development.

However, the neighborhood operates with a different time and social space than the city. Therefore, it must be observed from another path and with another intention. From this conception, it is necessary to study the neighborhood far from the city. That is, as a unit outside it´s central constitution, in order to establish the separation of a main identity, and of different identities that circulate and materialize in the neighborhood.