Urbanization Theorizing

Abstract

This chapter makes three specific points joining current discussions on urbanization in the global urban age. First, we discuss the traditions in sociological writings on urbanization in the nineteenth century and explain how they have shaped sociological urbanization research until present. We contrast the major theoretical perspectives on urbanization developed mainly over the twentieth century. We illustrate how varying interpretations of what is urban have resulted in divergent theoretical perspectives. Furthermore, we highlight the importance of adding culture to the demographic process in theorizing urbanization as the world becomes more global and cultural factors become more salient. Finally, we propose that, rather than assuming uniform global urbanity, further investigation can productively study the variability of urbanization in different places and the dynamics of how these are changing. We introduce a scenic approach to capture some of these new changes.