First, this study draws on a multidisciplinary social science literature on institutions to outline the concept of institutional informalism, which is then developed further into two related sub-concepts: urban informalism and bureaucratic informalism. The central thesis of both frameworks is that informality can be seen as a process of interaction between the institutional rationalities of the formal institutions of the state and informal institutions of society in which the former is shaped by the latter. Second, as part of the critical review of literature, the concept of `urban informalism' is used to analyze five empirical case examples drawn from the literature as a way to assess what the contemporary idea of urban informality means for policy and practice and the governance of local areas when considered in its alternative understandings as urban informalism. The critical review concludes that urban informality can be seen as a constantly ongoing institutional process in which urban informal actors in pursuit of everyday aspirations of city life knit and reknit the composite institutional fabric and appropriate the monopolized epistemic enactments of the city in an urban theater of unequal power. This can be seen in the infinite processes of experimentation, power play and institutionalization that sustain the effective governing framework in a constant state of flux and reinvention. Third, using the second sub-concept of bureaucratic informalism, I use qualitative methods of study to examine the transactional experiences of urban residents of Accra as it relates to the access to public sector services and opportunities and I identify the informal structures and relations that shape such public sector transactions. Firstly, consistent with theory and existing empirical work, the study finds that informal relational structures in the form of kinship, friendship and co-ethnicity play an important role in facilitating access to public sector services and opportunities. Secondly, the study finds new evidence regarding informal structures and relations of power associated with partisanship and the exploitation of incumbency and the leveraging of power by officialdom and the wealthy urban middle class. The study finds that such leveraging of power enables powerful individuals and their affiliates to obtain privileged access to services and opportunities in the public sector. Such leveraging of power also enables the powerful and the wealthy to appropriate legally and illegally the resources and protections of the law and public policy. It also enables them to play by different sets of rules and standards outside the framework of law and public policy. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2012. / October 26, 2012. / access to public services, informal governance, informal networks, institutional theory, institutions and governance in Africa, urban informality / Includes bibliographical references. / Rebecca Miles, Professor Directing Dissertation; Jim Cobbe, University Representative; Petra Doan, Committee Member.

This dissertation examines David Mamet's non-dramatic writings and interview responses to posit in an organized manner his theories about the power and potential of dramatic language in order to clarify his dramatic language strategy to improve the effectiveness of staging his plays. Mamet is a dramatic poet who uses his metaphorical language and speech rhythms to entirely create a new world for his characters to inhabit. Mamet characters create their reality through the use of labels, the physical act of speaking, gossip and lies. These Mamet theories are put to the test in an analysis of the script Speed-the-Plow. Mamet also uses dramatic language to create character. The actor creating a Mamet character focuses his/her analysis on three areas of analysis. The first is what do other characters say about the character? Second, what does the character say about itself? Third, what are the character's speech mannerisms? These areas are illuminated in an analysis of Oleanna. Mamet uses dramatic language to create society. Dramatic language creates a relationship between two characters. That relationship unit uses dramatic language to join a community. Those communities use dramatic language to communicate with other communities and form society. These theories are explored in the analysis of Boston Marriage. / A Dissertation submitted to the School of Theatre in partial fulfillment requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2011. / October 19, 2011. / Criticism, Dramatic Language, Theory / Includes bibliographical references. / Mary Karen Dahl, Professor Directing Dissertation; Karen Laughlin, University Representative; Kris Salata, Committee Member.

This multiple-case study looks at perceived tenure security in three informal settlements in Lahore and the effects of provincial government-driven tenure regularization program on perceived tenure security. It investigates the constituents of tenure security in the three settlements and the links between tenure security, home improvement, access to basic services and residents' capacity to utilize the economic benefits of their homes. Evidence suggests that tenure security is based on several factors that work in tandem, such as the historical evolution of the settlement, the presence of a de facto leader, and the presence of basic services. Tenure security, however, is not clearly related to the timing of home improvements, nor to whether residents are able to realize the economic value of their home. The economic means residents have available and the socio-political and spatial attributes of the settlement in which they live, are more important determinants of the economic benefits of property titling in these cases. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / June 18, 2012. / Housing, Informal settlements, Lahore, Property titling, Tenure security / Includes bibliographical references. / Rebecca Miles, Professor Directing Dissertation; Ralph Brower, University Representative; Petra Doan, Committee Member.

Provision of basic urban services, such as potable water, sanitation and refuse collection is vital and instrumental to health and economic well being of any society. However, the delivery of adequate urban services in the cities of developing countries has not been successful due to a myriad of challenges including rapid urbanization, limited resources, urban poverty, informality, slums and squatter settlements, in addition to other socioeconomic and political forces. While numerous studies have documented the inability of the cities to provide adequate services, very few have explored how residents of the cities cope with the problems in service delivery. Using Abuja as a case study where data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 60 households, observation and review of documents, this dissertation conveys respondents' experience with the delivery of water, refuse collection and sanitation services. Second, the study explores household's coping strategies with unsatisfactory delivery of the services according to the Exit, Voice, Loyalty and Neglect (EVLN) model being the most dominant in the literature. Third, it evaluates the efficacy of the strategies. Fourth, it investigates the factors that influence the choice and efficacy of the coping strategies and lastly, it analyzes the sequences in the choices of the strategies. The study concludes that the centralized public sector approach is ineffective in providing adequate urban services in the city. As a result, informal alternatives such as getting water from vendors, boreholes, local wells, public buildings, rivers and rainfall and garbage disposal by self or informal collectors and septic system were devised for coping with poor urban services. Similarly, informal artisans like plumbers and masons were increasingly utilized for solving problems with service infrastructure and facilities rather than contacting utility officials. These coping strategies are mostly unsafe, costly and inconvenient to households, more especially children. However, this research found no evidence of residential relocation (Tiebout-exit) due to refuse collection problems but some renters expressed their intention to relocate due to severe water and sanitation problems. A few gated communities changed private refuse collectors and some households decided not to connect to public sewer but remain with their private septic system. Complaints to utility agencies by residents' associations were highly effective in getting service-related problems solved but it was less effective by groups of neighbors, while individual households often receive little or no responses from the agencies. The face-to-face mode of voice was found to be more effective than telephone calls or writing letters. Loyalty to the utility agencies was a result of improvement on service delivery or by comparing service performance with other cities. Refuse collection problems were often neglected, but problems with water and sanitation services were neglected only for temporary problems or those located away from homes. This study also deepens our understanding of the variety of factors that influence the choice and efficacy of the response strategies. Factors that are most relevant to this study are necessity of the services, health concerns and cost of employing the strategies. While housing and neighborhood conditions and inefficiency of the public sector recorded moderate level of influence, socio-cultural factors and city planning regulations are least important in determining the choice and efficacy of coping strategies. This dissertation reiterates the need to recognize quasi-exit as an independent form of exit and the most dominant strategy for coping with poor public services in the Third World. It also concludes that the existing EVLN model is deficient in explaining user response to publicly-provided services in the developing countries and as such, proposes modifying it by adding a new dimension, called "investment", to represent resources invested in improving the efficacy of the EVLN strategies used to cope with unsatisfactory provision of necessary public services like water and sanitation. Moreover, this study suggests that the modified EVLN model can be used as a tool for monitoring the performance of public services by utilities agencies. The research also informs planning practice by making policy recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the existing coping strategies. It also calls for establishing residents associations at districts as a means of improving service performance through collective action and proposes other ways of enhancing the delivery of basic public services in Abuja and other cities of developing countries / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2012. / August 16, 2012. / Abuja, Nigeria, Exit, Voice, Loyalty and Neglect strategies, piped/tap water, refuse/garbage collection, sanitation/sewer, urban/public services / Includes bibliographical references. / Petra L. Doan, Professor Directing Dissertation; Timothy S. Chapin, Committee Member; Ralph S. Brower, University Representative.

The three major research questions are: What factors influence ridership for different types of transit systems? Is there a relationship between transit system design and accessibility? Does one type of transit system design provide greater accessibility to transit dependent riders than choice riders? For answering these research questions the author first developed the transit demand model for the four different transit systems in the study area of the 5-county Atlanta region. Then the author calculated the accessibility provided by each of these transit systems to the transit dependent and choice riders and pointed out the areas that have a high ridership potential using the distance decay parameter obtained from the demand model. Lastly the author presented the findings from the telephone interviews of the region's policy makers, elected officials and transit agencies about their perspective and assessment of the transit system and its future which helps explain the difference in transit service quality that exists in the region. The author finds that multidestination bus riders are more likely to come from regions with lower vehicle ownership as compared to the riders of the radial rail, radial bus or express buses. Rail seems to provide the highest accessibility to the region but is very expensive to construct new or extend existing rail routes. The multidestination system provides the highest levels of accessibility among the bus systems and it is much less expensive to expand The interviewees consider the existing system to be fair, but suggest the need of image makeover and have hopes from the new leadership of MARTA. They also want to work together to build a truly regional transit system to compete with other growing world cities in attracting talent and businesses by providing them with better transportation options, but money and control issues crop up when collaborating for regional transit. Transit agencies do not want state oversight in local transit planning either. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2013. / June 7, 2013. / Accessibility, Atlanta, Demand Model, Equity, Transit system design / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey R. Brown, Professor Directing Dissertation; Gregory L. Thompson, Professor Co-Directing Dissertation; Mark Horner, University Representative; Keith Ihlanfeldt, Committee Member.

The development of the third world has been based on economic development and the opportunity for expanded markets, the exploitation of labor and the exportation of first world values. Yet, over time, the focus of development has been challenged. A broad philosophical stroke of change has refocused development action to include market based, industrial and capitalistic ideas of prosperity as well as human and social development. Progressive development action is refocused on quality of life and opportunity enhancement. Now, economic development and capitalistic approaches to lifting the third world from poverty persist alongside development action centered in human development. This research ponders the possibility that development programs centered in land tenure formalization can have broader applications to progressive and sustainable objectives related to human development and increasing human agency. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2013. / March 21, 2013. / Developing Countries, Development, Human Capabilities, Land Formalization, Land Tenure Reform / Includes bibliographical references. / Rebecca Miles, Professor Directing Dissertation; Ralph Brower, University Representative; Petra Doan, Committee Member.

Urban containment strategies have long been a central part of Florida's growth management system but literature advocating municipal adoption of an urban containment strategy has far outweighed rigorous analysis of Florida's primary tool seeking to promote contiguous urban development and fiscally efficient service provision, the urban service area (USA). This study examines the price effects of the USA boundary in Tallahassee, Florida by examining the impact of the USA boundary on area land markets. The findings suggest the establishment of the USA strategy is statistically associated with a price suppression effect on low-density land values, though the magnitude of the effect can be characterized as mild. However, the findings also suggest that the USA strategy is not influencing land values and development trends in the manner anticipated. The primary implications of the findings suggest that Tallahassee's system of incentives and disincentives to manage the location and timing of urban development through infrastructure phasing is not a strong enough carrot to influence the location of urban development. These findings have significant land planning implications for Tallahassee and Leon County, notably that sewer provisions may not be the growth shaper envisioned by program architects. The author demonstrates that great care needs to be taken when designing research seeking to identify the price effects of growth controls on area land markets, as the results are very sensitive to how variables are measured. The primary conclusion drawn from this research is that land planning agencies need to pay particular attention to how distinct land development regulations may work at cross-purposes and thus defeat some of the aims of comprehensively managed growth. Most importantly, communities must carefully consider the trade-offs involved when implementing urban containment programs, namely the perceived short vs. long-term impacts of land management programs, as well as the trade-offs between the fiscal efficiency gains and social equity implications of a USA strategy. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2003. / February 21, 2003. / Growth Management, Urban Service Area (USA) Boundary / Includes bibliographical references. / Charles Connerly, Professor Directing Dissertation; David Rasmussen, Outside Committee Member; Ivonne Audirac, Committee Member.

It has been assumed that paid work leads to greater autonomy for women. This dissertation focuses on how education and employment relate to different dimensions of autonomy. Four dimensions of autonomy are discussed. They are economic decision making, ability to take care of self when sick, freedom from violence and freedom of mobility. Secondary and higher education are associated with greater autonomy in economic decision making, ability to take care of self when sick and freedom of mobility. However, they do not automatically lead to increased freedom from violence. The relationship between work and autonomy is more complicated than that of education and autonomy. To get a clearer picture of the association between work and autonomy, this study focuses on three different dimensions of work, namely work status (work and do not work), type of remuneration (cash and non cash), and type of employment (work for someone else, family worker and selfemployed). Generally, women who work for cash display greater autonomy in all dimensions than non working women and working women who are not paid in cash. Some types of work are more strongly associated with autonomy than others. In particular, there are differences between the self-employed and family workers. The first show greater autonomy than the latter. The difference in level of employment between these two groups relates to the nature of employment. Women who are self-employed develop skills to negotiate with various parties, own capital, albeit small, and control profit. In contrast, family workers work under the supervision of family members, who often co-reside with them, hence they have no greater autonomy at work. Therefore labor force participation does not increase their autonomy at home. The finding suggests the importance of looking at the meaning of work in a more critical manner. Participation in paid work is often construed as a sign of modernity, therefore it is commendable. However, there is a wide array of reasons why women work and types of employment. Some of them generate autonomy, while some perpetuate patriarchal relations. The study also finds that some types of work are associated with lower levels of autonomy. In particular, self-employed and family workers have higher odds of ever having been beaten than non-working women. In this case, the true causal factor is likely to be poverty and male employment. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2003. / March 26, 2003. / Work And Autonomy, Women's Education / Includes bibliographical references. / Rebecca Miles, Professor Directing Dissertation; Isaac Eberstein, Outside Committee Member; Petra Doan, Committee Member.

This thesis work addresses two research questions regarding sustainability that may be of interest to the planning profession, namely, is it useful and meaningful to measure the sustainability of residential neighborhoods in terms of their long-term viability? And if it is, is it then feasible to design an instrument for measuring neighborhood sustainability that can be used to inform neighborhood-scale planning and decision making? Interpreting from a review of planning literature regarding sustainability at the neighborhood scale that efforts to measure neighborhood sustainability provide insight and knowledge to planners about neighborhood conditions, I followed a step wise process to construct an instrument. This process involved defining sustainability as is relevant at neighborhood scale, identifying forces that influence it, defining the unit of analysis for the measurement instrument, and operationalizing the instrument. It is my conclusion that while it is feasible to construct an instrument for measuring sustainability, it is through additional research work outside of the graduate thesis that such an instrument can successfully be constructed. Due to time and resource constraints, I have only been able to develop an instrument of measurement that may be useful to planners chiefly as a heuristic tool rather than a policy making analytic tool. / A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Interior Design in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science. / Spring Semester, 2006. / March 24, 2006. / Social, Sustainability, Index, Environmental, Economic, Neighborhoods / Includes bibliographical references. / Ricardo Navarro, Professor Directing Thesis; Lisa Waxman, Committee Member; Eric Wiedegreen, Committee Member; Eric Ohlsson, Committee Member.

There has been no such study to date to investigate the residential origin of the varying categories of homeless. This study investigates the spatial distribution of residential origins of the varying categories of homeless and the factors that contribute to the vulnerability of individuals to become homeless. The study categorizes homeless people based on gender, family status, the occurrence of alcohol, drug and mental health (ADM) problem, chronicity and veteran status. Data for this study was obtained through the 2005 point-in-time homelessness survey in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The use of hot spot analyses reveal the differences in the spatial distribution of the prior addresses of varying categories of the homeless including by gender, family status, the occurrence of ADM problem and chronicity. The spatial distribution statistics indicate that the differences are statistically significant. This study suggests that the various factors associated with the causes of varying categories of the homeless did correspond to the spatial distribution of residential origins of the homeless. The spatial distribution of the prior addresses can be a new characteristic that distinguishes between one type of the homeless and other type of the homeless. This study also shows similar pattern of the spatial distribution of prior addresses of homeless women to those of homeless women-dominated categories including homeless family, homeless without ADM problem and non-chronic homeless. The prior addresses of these homeless categories are less tied to neighborhoods of high poverty than those of homeless men and homeless men-dominated categories including homeless individuals, homeless with ADM problem and chronic homeless. This finding suggest the possibility that domestic violence as well as other gender-based variables that are not confined strictly to neighborhoods of high poverty are variables that explains the differential distribution of prior addresses of homeless women and homeless women-dominated categories from homeless men and homeless men-dominated categories. This study also reveals that areas that characterized by deprivation and high rate of unemployment, proportion of Blacks and female-headed households with young children are strongly and positively significant in producing more homeless of varying categories. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2006. / March 20, 2006. / Prior Addresses of the Homeless, Spatial Analysis, Homelessness / Includes bibliographical references. / Charles E. Connerly, Professor Directing Dissertation; Wendy Crook, Outside Committee Member; Rebecca Miles, Committee Member.