Mapping the Urban Experience: Understanding Residents’ Perceptions of the Streets of Delhi

International Journal of Humanities and Social Science

© 2024 by SSRG - IJHSS Journal

Volume 11 Issue 4

Year of Publication : 2024

Authors : Asmi Agarwal

10.14445/23942703/IJHSS-V11I4P102

How to Cite?

Asmi Agarwal, "Mapping the Urban Experience: Understanding Residents’ Perceptions of the Streets of Delhi," SSRG International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, vol. 11,  no. 4, pp. 16-31, 2024. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23942703/IJHSS-V11I4P102

Abstract:

Streets form a vital component of an urban space, serving social, political, economic, cultural, and overall circulatory functions. Being the arteries of public spaces, streets are also laden with the precondition of being accessible, providing equal functionality and ingress regardless of individual or collective socioeconomic locations. A suppositious paradigm of urban streets would fulfil these and all other requisites attached to the well-being of residents occupying them; whether these aspects have been incorporated or sufficiently observed in a built environment often remains ambiguous. The divergence between the ideal model of a streetscape and the reality observed by urban dwellers can often be discerned through a phenomenological approach. This paper examines the perceptions of Delhi residents regarding the streetscape of the region. This study uses a concept mapping methodology to examine user experience by analysing several criteria, such as the perceptions and semantic associations of inhabitants. A snowball sampling strategy was employed to identify a diverse group of respondents from 4 different districts with variations across gender, age, educational background, and occupation. They were then presented with a qualitative survey to collect empirical data. Through the analysis of residents’ knowledge structures, it becomes evident that residents of different districts have varying levels of accessibility. Although demographics can influence particular contentions, such as a gendered understanding of public space, we nonetheless observed concerns and perceptions which transcend such divisions. Examining these perspectives can foster a greater sensitivity to the requirements of urban planning, street design, and the habitability of Delhi’s built environment.

Keywords:

Delhi, Urban design, Streetscape, Concept mapping, Phenomenology.

References:

[1] ITDP, Better Streets, Better Cities: A Guide to Street Design in Urban India, Ahmedabad: ITDP, 2011.
[Publisher Link]
[2] Kim Carlotta von Schönfeld, and Luca Bertolini, “Urban Streets: Epitomes of Planning Challenges and Opportunities at the Interface of Public Space and Mobility,” Cities, vol. 68, pp. 48-55, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[3] Minoo Harirchian, Maral Esmaeili, and Shahab Kermanshahi, “A New Perspective on Urban Street Design,” The Transp Res Boa (TRB) 97th Annual Meeting, pp. 1-14, 2018.
[Google Scholar]
[4] Marketta Kyttä, Maarit Kahila, and Anna Broberg, “Perceived Environmental Quality as an Input to Urban Infill Policy-Making,” Urban Design International, vol. 16, pp. 19-35, 2011.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[5] Hooman Hematian, and Ehsan Ranjbar, “Evaluating Urban Public Spaces from Mental Health Point of View: Comparing Pedestrian and Car-Dominated Streets,” Journal of Transport & Health, vol. 27, pp. 1-18, 2022.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[6] Jaisung Choi et al., “Human-Centered Designs, Characteristics of Urban Streets, and Pedestrian Perceptions,” Journal of Advanced Transportation, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 120-137, 2016.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[7] Clare Hickman, “‘To Brighten the Aspect of Our Streets and Increase the Health and Enjoyment of Our City’: The National Health Society and Urban Green Space in Late-Nineteenth Century London,” Landscape and Urban Planning, vol. 118, pp. 112-119, 2013.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[8] Matthew Carmona et al., “Street Appeal: The Value of Street Improvements,” Progress in Planning, vol. 126, pp. 1-51, 2018.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[9] Vaddiparti Lova Surya Prakasa Rao, Vernon Ram, and K.V. Sundaram, Delhi, Britannica, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.britannica.com/place/Delhi
[10] Margaret A. Kubilins, “Designing Functional Streets that Contribute to Our Quality of Life,” Transportation Research Circular E-C019: Urban Street Symposium: Conference Proceedings, 2000.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[11] Jan Gehl, Cities for People, Island Press, pp. 1-288, 2013.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[12] Nancy Hui et al., “Measuring the Completeness of Complete Streets,” Transport Reviews, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 73-95, 2018.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[13] Zhaoya Gong et al., “Classifying Street Spaces with Street View Images for a Spatial Indicator of Urban Functions,” Sustainability, vol. 11, no. 22, pp. 1-17, 2019.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[14] W.C. LaBaugh, “Roads in Developing Countries,” Transportation Research Board Special Report, pp. 25-32, 1975.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[15] Faisal Bin Sulaiman, and Mohammed Almahmood, “Following the Process: Unfolding How Form-Based Code—As a Travelling Concept—Has Been Adapted Within the Social, Cultural, and Architectural Context of Riyadh,” Urban Design International, pp. 177- 197, 2022.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[16] Prithvi Deore, and Saumya Lathia, “Streets as Public Spaces: Lessons from Street Vending in Ahmedabad, India,” Urban Planning, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 138-153, 2019.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[17] Meeta Tandon, and Vandana Sehgal, “Traditional Indian Religious Streets: A Spatial Study of the Streets of Mathura,” Frontiers of Architectural Research, vol. 6, no. 4, pp. 469-479, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[18] Jyotindra Jain, “Metaphor of an Indian Street,” Architecture Plus Design, vol. 8, no. 5, 1991.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[19] S. Mostafa Rasoolimanesh et al., “Urban vs. Rural Destinations: Residents’ Perceptions, Community Participation and Support for Tourism Development,” Tourism Management, vol. 60, pp. 147-158, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[20] Klaus Krippendorff, “Intrinsic Motivation and Human-Centred Design,” Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 43- 72, 2004.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[21] Ataullah, “Mapping 18th Century Delhi: Cityscape of a Pre-Modern Sovereign City,” Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, vol. 67, pp. 1042-1057, 2006.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[22] SRDC, “Revitalisation of Shahjahanabad: Walled City of Delhi,” File No. F. 6(11), SRDC Project CD No. 000296268, 2014.
[Publisher Link]
[23] Stephen P. Blake, Shahjahanabad: The Sovereign City in Mughal India, 1639-1739, Cambridge University Press, pp. 1-226, 1991.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[24] Ivan Illich, H2O and the Waters of Forgetfulness, Boyars, pp. 1-92, 1986.
[Publisher Link]
[25] Sunil Kumar, The Present in Delhi's Pasts, 1 st Edition, Three Essays Press, pp. 1-131, 2002.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[26] Abhishek Kaicker, “The Colonial Entombment of the Mughal Habitus: Delhi in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries,” Master of Arts Thesis, The University of British Columbia, pp. 1-61, 2006.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[27] Howard Spodek, “City Planning in India Under British Rule,” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 48, no. 4, pp. 53-61, 2013.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[28] Henry Harpur Spry, Modern India: With Illustrations of the Resources and Capabilities of Hindústan, Whittaker & Company, pp. 1-666, 1837.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[29] Huda Khan, and Richard Lee, “Does Packaging Influence Taste and Quality Perceptions Across Varying Consumer Demographics?,” Food Quality and Preference, vol. 84, 2020.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[30] Forest Survey of India, “India State of Forest Report (ISFR),” Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, 2021.
[Publisher Link]
[31] Sarwat Viqar, “Unsettling Streetscapes,” Interdisciplinary Unsettlings of Place and Space, pp. 153-164, 2019.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[32] Vanessa Casado Perez, “Reclaiming the Streets,” Iowa Law Review: Texas A&M University School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper Series, vol. 106, no. 5, pp. 2185-2213, 2020.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[33] Werner Kroeber-Riel, Peter Weinberg, and Andrea Gröppel-Klein, Consumer Behavior, 9 th ed., Vahlen, pp. 1-812, 2009.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[34] Lokendra Shastri, Why Semantic Networks, Principles of Semantic Networks: Explorations in the Representation of Knowledge, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, pp. 109-136, 1991.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[35] Elizabeth Cowley, and Andrew A. Mitchell, “The Moderating Effect of Product Knowledge on the Learning and Organization of Product Information,” Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 443-454, 2003.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[36] Annamaria Silvana De Rosa,, “The “Associative Network”: A Technique for Detecting Structure, Contents, Polarity and Stereotyping Indexes of the Semantic Fields,” European Review of Applied Psychology, vol. 52, no. 3-4, pp. 181-200, 2002.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[37] William M.K. Trochim, “An Introduction to Concept Mapping for Planning and Evaluation,” Evaluation and Program Planning, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 1-16, 1989.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[38] Cria O. Gregory et al., “Health Perceptions and Demographic Characteristics Associated with Underassessment of Body Weight,” Obesity, vol. 16, no. 5, pp. 979-986, 2008.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[39] James A. Rye, and Peter A. Rubba, “An Exploration of the Concept Map as an Interview Tool to Facilitate the Externalization Of Students’ Understandings About Global Atmospheric Change,” Journal of Research in Science Teaching, vol. 35, no. 5, pp. 521-546, 1998.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[40] Christopher Joiner, “Concept Mapping in Marketing: A Research Tool for Uncovering Consumers’ Knowledge Structure Associations,” Advances in Consumer Research, vol. 25, no. 1, 1998.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[41] John R. Anderson, “A Spreading Activation Theory of Memory,” Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 261-295, 1983.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[42] Geraldine R. Henderson, Dawn Iacobucci, and Bobby J. Calder, “Brand Diagnostics: Mapping Branding Effects Using Consumer Associative Networks,” European Journal of Operational Research, vol. 111, no. 2, pp. 306-327, 1998.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[43] David Woodruff Smith, Phenomenology, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Archive, 2018.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[44] Anne Flood, “Understanding Phenomenology,” Nurse Researcher, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 7-15, 2010.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[45] Jean-François Lyotard, Phenomenology, State University of New York Press, pp. 1-147, 1991.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[46] Amedeo Giorgi, and Barbro Giorgi, Phenomenology, Qualitative Psychology: A Practical Guide to Research Methods, Sage Publications Inc, 2003.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[47] Frances Rapport et al., “Qualitative Research within Trials: Developing a Standard Operating Procedure for a Clinical Trials Unit,” Trials, vol. 14, pp. 1-8, 2013.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[48] Julie C. Libarkin, and Josepha P. Kurdziel, “Research Methodologies in Science Education: The Qualitative-Quantitative Debate,” Journal of Geoscience Education, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 78-86, 2002.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[49] Daniel Black, Digital Interfacing: Action and Perception Through Technology, Routledge, 1 st ed., pp. 1-210, 2018.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[50] Jack Martin, “Measuring Clients’ Cognitive Competence in Research on Counseling,” Journal of Counseling & Development, vol. 63, no. 9, pp. 556-560, 1985.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[51] Carola Grebitus, Food Quality from the Consumer’s Perspective: An Empirical Analysis of Perceived Pork Quality, Cuvillier, pp. 1-263, 2008.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[52] Philipp Mayring, Introduction to Qualitative Social Research, Beltz, 2016.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[53] Satu Elo, and Helvi Kyngäs, “The Qualitative Content Analysis Process,” Journal of Advanced Nursing, vol. 62, no. 1, pp. 107-115, 2008.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[54] George B. Cunningham, “Perceptions as Reality: The Influence of Actual and Perceived Demographic Dissimilarity,” Journal of Business and Psychology, vol. 22, pp. 79-89, 2007.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[55] Eunkyung Park, “Overestimation and Underestimation: Adolescents' Weight Perception in Comparison to BMI-Based Weight Status and How it Varies Across Socio-Demographic Factors,” Journal of School Health, vol. 81, no. 2, pp. 57-64, 2011.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[56] Jun Li, Faizan Ali, and Woo Gon Kim, “Age Matters: How Demographics Influence Visitor Perception and Attitude at the Destination Level,” International Journal of Innovation and Learning, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 149-164, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[57] Huda Khan, and Richard Lee, “Does Packaging Influence Taste and Quality Perceptions Across Varying Consumer Demographics?,” Food Quality and Preference, vol. 84, 2020.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[58] Yaakov Kareev, Iris Lieberman, and Miri Lev, “Through a Narrow Window: Sample Size and the Perception of Correlation,” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, vol. 126, no. 3, pp. 278-287, 1997.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[59] John J. Hater, and Bernard M. Bass, “Superiors’ Evaluations and Subordinates’ Perceptions of Transformational and Transactional Leadership,” Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 73, no. 4, pp. 695-702, 1988.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[60] William H. Starbuck, and John M. Mezias, “Opening Pandora’s Box: Studying the Accuracy of Managers’ Perceptions,” Journal of Organizational Behavior, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 99-117, 1996.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[61] Thomas P. Schambach, and Jim Dirks, “Student Perceptions of Internship Experiences,” Proceedings of the 17th Annual Conference of the International Academy for Information Management (IAIM), Barcelona, Spain, pp. 1-8, 2002.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[62] Jennifer Mc Sharry, R. Moss-Morris, and T. Kendrick, “Illness Perceptions and Glycaemic Control in Diabetes: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis,” Diabetic Medicine, vol. 28, no. 11, pp. 1300-1310, 2011.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[63] Hermine Mitter et al., “Exploring Farmers’ Climate Change Perceptions and Adaptation Intentions: Empirical Evidence from Austria,” Environmental Management, vol. 63, pp. 804-821, 2019.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[64] Delhi Air Quality Map: Live Air Pollution Map of Delhi, IQ Air, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.iqair.com/in-en/air-quality-map/india/delhi
[65] Madhuri Sharma, and Rajesh Kumar Abhay, “Urban Growth and Quality of Life: Inter-District and Intra-District Analysis of Housing in NCT-Delhi, 2001–2011–2020,” GeoJournal, vol. 87, pp. 797-819, 2022.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]