This thesis examines the concepts of power and participation and how they are intertwined in the examination of the urban planning systems in Curitiba, Brazil. Power is identified as both the planning system's ability to affect the daily lives of the city's residents and the power of individuals and groups to influence the planning process. Participation relates to how individuals, groups and communities are involved in the planning process. As a case study, Curitiba presents an example of how power gradients within the city influence participation in planning and how the power of planning impacts the daily lives of citizens. To explore these two themes, ethnographic research was conducted using ten key informants and more than twenty supporting informants. Additionally, participant observation methods and demographic data supplemented the respondents' statements. Three main aspects of the city's planning system -- transportation, land-use and education -- are examined. The discussion of these systems focuses on four main themes -- public participation, the role of government, the unequal provision, access and use of social services, and power relationships. The final three chapters examine the theoretical implications of this work and the application of the results to planning elsewhere. Planning in Curitiba demonstrates the inability of modernization theory to explain the multidirectional influences of planning concepts. Dependency theory and the world-systems perspectives are shown to offer better explanations of the dominance of multinational corporate interests in planning and the role Curitiba's planning systems play in incorporating residents into the broader world. Furthermore, the planning system in Curitiba shows the inability of elitist and pluralists perspectives of community power structures to capture the complexity of planning decisions. On the individual level, the resistance of shanty town residents to planning is viewed as a form of participation. Curitiba's planning systems show the importance of including the whole community in the process. Planners must encourage citizen participation and work to mobilize diverse community groups. Planning must be depoliticizing and supported through innovative leveraging of the city's resources. In promoting a city's planning identity, planners must identify the individual interests that motivate involvement in the planning process. / Graduation date: 1998

Oliver Goldsmith was not only a superior craftsman but also a sincere moralist, an author who created works crackling with intentional satire; the most representative of these works is The Citizen of the World, a remarkably varied collection that contains outstanding examples of the satiric essay. Goldsmith has been established as a satiric author, yet there are some questions of refinement--points involving his method and intent, his relationship to the eighteenth century, and the nature of his work--that need to be answered. The aim of this paper is to clarify these points by systematically analyzing the satiric technique and purpose in Goldsmith's The Citizen of the World, and by characterizing the satiric nature of Goldsmith's collection. The Citizen of the World was published in 1762, a time of change for eighteenth-century satire; consequently, the technique, purpose, and nature of Goldsmith's satire can be determined only by examining his work through an historical perspective, taking into account the influences in both halves of the eighteenth century.Two sections provide the background for this approach: the first defines the elements of satire, and the second traces the rise and decline of major English satire during the eighteenth century. The satiric elements--technique, purpose, and nature--are based on the following points that constitute the working definition of satire for this study: an attack on irrational, inappropriate conduct, the transformation of that attack into literature through selected techniques, and the justification of that attack based on the author's moral judgment. Satiric technique includes form, characters, and rhetorical tools; purpose involves the author's attitude, satiric objects of attack, and norms; and nature encompasses the specific kind of satire that differentiates one period from another, one author from another, making the definition a more sensitive instrument. Once established, these elements are applied to satire written during the English eighteenth century, a period that includes two kinds of satire, one created by the Augustan Age, the other by the Age of Sensibility. Examining the major changes in satire through this method not only illuminates the eighteenth-century satiric tradition but also provides essential background for analysis of Goldsmith's collection.The satire in The Citizen of the World, consequently, reflects various traits representative of each period within the eighteenth century. Those features characteristic of the Augustan Age--the pseudoletter genre, Altangi, assorted caricatures, the rhetorical tools drawn from all four comic theories, the satiric weapon of irony, the quality of critical humor, the intense emotions of moral contempt and righteous indignation, the unacceptable examples of vice and folly, the emphasis on man's responsibility for his own actions, and the normative values-generate satire that is, at least in several respects, moral, moderate, reasonable, amusing, and powerful. Similarly, those features characteristic of the Age of Sensibility--extensive variety and miscellany, the Man in Black, the developing character of Beau Tibbs, the concept of benevolent laughter, the definite tone of amusement and tolerance, the unacceptable examples of affectation, and the general objects of attack--generate satire that is, at least partially, good-natured, tolerant, moderate, amusing, and mild. Taken together, these features from both periods of the eighteenth century account for a satiric work that is Horatian, that is occasionally intense, occasionally moderate, that is, in truth, a blend of two particular kinds of satire, one created by the Augustan Age, the other by the Age of Sensibility.

As our contemporary cities continue to revitalize, redefine, and reassert themselves on an international scale, public spaces provide an opportunity to lend the sense of place which makes cities unique and compelling. Several cities such as Toronto, Chicago, and most notably Bilbao have commissioned world renowned architects to design a project in their signature style. These projects are generally anticipated with great excitement, yet once they are completed and a few years have passed, the initial enthusiasm fades along with the international recognition which originated the object. In the end, these projects, regardless of how well they are liked by the citizens of a city, seem to lack a sense of authenticity. Citizen participation offers an opportunity to develop public spaces in a way that will reintroduce the citizen into its built environment. Rather than merely offering a beautiful space, the participatory design model recognizes the collaborative potential with the citizen, and embraces it. This research-based thesis seeks to understand the growing movement of citizen participation and the role it can play in the design of urban public spaces. Furthermore, it examines the role of the architect and how one can begin to successfully integrate the citizen into the design process. The research is divided into three sections. First, a survey of the literature surrounding the field of participation provides an understanding of different attitudes and methods regarding citizen involvement and why its integration into the design of public spaces is important. Second, a series of case studies with varying levels of citizen participation were examined for the role the architect and his/her relationship with the citizen, as well as the overall effectiveness public participation had on the end result. Finally, the third section illustrates two applications of a participation workshop, originally designed by Proboscis, both located in Winnipeg, Manitoba. This thesis maintains that citizen participation is not only beneficial to the development of urban public spaces but is essential if one wishes to design a space that can empower a neighbourhood and its city. Moreover, public spaces designed through the participatory design model allows for citizens to take ownership for the space and appropriate it as their own, which will lead to its continual development, transforming the space into a locus for the city.

The study topic of public participation is recently transferred from politics issue to living topic. The level of participation will depend on several factors: regional emotion, participation level and the social background. This study investigates the influences of the university campus place attachment and public participation relations of local user by studying the open and regional properties of the National Cheng Kung University. Four research purposes are investigated: (1) the place attachment of different local user; (2) the difference of public participation between different local users; (3) the relationships between place attachment and public participation and (4) providing some specific suggestions to the government for future space design. This study is carried out by collecting the well designed questionnaire and the campus users are chosen as the test subject. A questionnaire retrieved rate of 373/400 is achieved by the period of 2011 March 19th through 2011 April 10th and the data is further analyzed by using Windows SPSS 17 statistic analysis software, and consequently the assumptions can be verified clearly. The factor analysis indicates that place attachment includes four aspects: (1) user function satisfied; (2) lifestyle conformation; (3) emotion growing and (4) safe environment. And another four aspects are defined in public participation: (1) non-participation; (2) spirit participation; (3) Action participation and (4) leading participation. Further conclusions are specified as: (1) users with different social background lead significant difference in place attachment; (2) users with different social background cause significant difference in public participation; (3) significant difference in relationships between place attachment and public participation. Non participation shows negative correlation between the four aspects of place attachment. However, tokenism participation and citizen power participation indicate positive and significant correlation relation with place attachment and (4) regression analysis shows significant relation between the aspects of user function satisfied and leading participation in place attachment. However, not only the aspects of user function satisfied and leading participation but also safe environment are indicated to be significant relation in denizen place attachment. In this way, this study suggests the government regional participation planer should not only strengthen the user dependence and identification to local place but also encourage the democracy, planer and the government to work together for constructing the safe environment and hence increasing the people participation volition. Furthermore, we can find the key regional civilization by professional field investigation to have good realization about the need of the regional user and consequently increasing the people participation. Finally, we may be able to further link the place attachment and public participation by professional participation design to distinguish different local users and hence produce different plan for different regional users.

The Texas Volunteer Guard, created by the Militia Law of 1879, continued to allow African Americans to serve as citizen soldiers. From 1880 to 1906 over six hundred black men faithfully served in the various state militia companies of Galveston and San Antonio; yet, their service has rarely obtained scholarly attention. Often discounted by historians as mere social clubs or deemed too few and insignificant to warrant study, these men sought not only to demonstrate their citizenship, but to improve their social status during a period of racial segregation. The differences and similarities of these groups of African American men at the grassroots level are illuminated by using the comparative method to examine socioeconomic characteristics. Furthermore, this examination demonstrates how racial attitudes remained flexible enough during this period to allow these men to participate in military-type activities. An examination of these activities, both as citizens and as soldiers, makes evident what inspired this state military service. Framed within the network of local fraternal, social, religious, educational, and political organizations, coupled with a study of previous military service, the militia companies expose the aim of these African American men to improve their social status as citizens through militia participation. The Adjutant General of Texas issued firearms, ammunition, and equipment to the respective companies of African American militiamen from these cities, and coordinated training exercises, which involved the travel of armed black men over the state’s existing railroads. Despite their segregated status, the very presence of armed, uniformed black men officially sanctioned by the Democratic-controlled government of Texas suggests that race relationships still remained flexible enough during this time for African Americans to display their citizenship and manhood through state military service. Conversely, their dissolution in 1906 reveals the termination of that flexibility and solidified their status as second-class citizens. Even though they were unsuccessful in continuing their military organization, the heroic efforts of these men deserves inclusion in the written history of the long struggle for African American civil rights in this country.

The main purposes of this study were to explore civic consciousness, citizen participation and the influential factors of students of Taipei¡¦s community universities. This study adopted the questionnaire-survey approach. 553 students from six Taipei¡¦s community universities were randomly sampled by the researcher. The instrument for the study: ¡§the Questionnaire of Community Universities Students¡¦ Civic Consciousness and Citizen Participation¡¨ were developed by the researcher and included two scales, one was ¡§the Scale of Civic Consciousness¡¨ and the other was ¡§the Scale of Citizen Participation.¡¨ The methods for data analysis were descriptives, t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson product-moment correlation, canonical correlation, and multiple stepwise regression. The following five findings were concluded: 1. Students of Taipei¡¦s community universities had high civic consciousness, but their citizen participation showed the medium participation only. 2. The civic consciousness of students of Taipei¡¦s community universities differed in terms of respondents¡¦ personal variables and community- university variables. 3. The citizen participation of students of Taipei¡¦s community universities differed in terms of respondents¡¦ personal variables and community- university variables. 4. There was significant correlation between students¡¦ civic consciousness and citizen participation they showed. 5. The personal variables, community-university variables and civic consciousness of students of Taipei¡¦s community universities could be effective predictors for students¡¦ level of citizen participation. Finally, some suggestions were raised to the community universities, the students of community universities, and future research.

The focus of this thesis is mainly to investigate the external political process from consensus conference and the correlation between consensus conference and political policy aimed at understanding the external effect of the conference. This thesis also studies the influence of public conference on both the administrative body and city council and the operations of public policy. A case study putting its emphasis on the public conference in installing a harbor cable car system bears a sense of unique significance in the very first consensus conference on municipal agenda in Taiwan. It is found that a consensus conference is perhaps more suitable for local administration to solve municipal issues than for the central government to solve national agenda. Thus, local government should step up its efforts to promote the valuable channel of citizen participation via public conference in an attempt to raise the consciousness of citizenship. The purpose of this article is also to get in-depth knowledge of the correlation between the consensus conference and public policy via comparison and analyses of social theories and publications and to interview dedicated personnel with both the administrative agency and city council for further discussions, which could, in the end, serve as a probable option to solve controversial issues once the deliberative democracy is chosen. The opinions collected via on-site interviews with dedicated administrative agencies (e.g. Bureau of Urban development & Bureau of Human Resources Development) and Kaohsiung city council have been used to analyze and verify the political clout of the consensus onference outside the regular decision-making process, which might become a valuable lesson learned for both the central and local authorities in the future.

In recent years groups in several cities have attempted to use online media and digital technology to help the members of marginalized communities cover where they live. These initiatives have the potential to improve mainstream coverage, which relies on official sources and typically portrays these communities as deviant. But despite their relative independence, the influence of the culture of journalism itself could potentially lead these initiatives to use routines and frames that replicate the mainstream’s coverage of the marginalized. This dissertation analyzed four case studies, one based in Austin and three in Chicago, to examine this paradox. It investigated how the schools and nonprofits that maintain these initiatives balance participation with professionalism, and how participants relate to other residents, institutions, and officials within their communities and in other communities. It explored the limits of citizen journalism’s attempts to supplement and improve upon professional journalism. These cases were considered in terms of Bourdieu’s concept of the journalistic field, Castells’ network society, and Habermas’ public sphere. This theoretical framework is concerned with whose voices are heard in public discourse and in the culture overall. As Castells makes clear, access to the Internet and facility with online communication is a requirement for participation in public life, including journalism. But as Bourdieu argues, there are cultural aspects as well to the field of journalism that can limit such participation. Each initiative faced a tradeoff between adhering to traditional journalistic practices and standards and attracting participation from members of a community. A combination of elements of journalism culture (having editors and training), community media culture (advocating for communities, covering ongoing issues alongside events), and digital culture (allowing participants freedom to contribute in multiple ways, interaction) seems the most effective way to improve coverage of marginalized communities. Such a mixture would aid the creation of bonding social capital within a community and bridging social capital across communities, and presents an opportunity for the marginalized to use their cultural capital to gain social capital. Yet this hybrid model of journalism is resisted by the societal factors that influence mainstream journalism. / text

published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration