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Title: The Tragedy of the Urban Commons: Housing Policy Values and Equivocation

Citation Type: Conference Paper

Publication Year: 2009

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Abstract: Housing policy research has a precarious link to overarching theory. Anyresemblance to replicable phenomena, though interesting and noteworthy, is coincidental and,at best, existential in the context of time, place and human interventions. Complexity in itsmost visceral form beguiles the rank and file of positivist scholars into believing that theapplication of algebraic expressions and algorithms, alone, can explicate the human dynamic,a dynamic that is galvanized by political, social and personal self-interest. Positivism invitesa construct of equivocation with an internal bias that seeks to influence values that areineffective in informing housing policy. In using the tragedy of the urban commons as acontextual metaphor to describe the disconnect between positivist policy research and housingpolicy outcomes, I challenge quantitative researchers and qualitative thinkers, alike, to engagein a pragmatic dialogue around housing policy values, practices and demonstrable outcomes.

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Authors: Proctor, Edward

Conference Name: City Futures

Publisher Location: Madrid, Spain

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Housing and Segregation

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