TY - JOUR
T1 - Chinese urban planning at fifty
T2 - An assessment of the planning theory literature
AU - TANG, Wing Shing
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2017 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2000/2
Y1 - 2000/2
N2 - This article reviews the literature on urban planning in China. The literature has traditionally viewed urban planning in terms of changing styles over time. It was found wanting both methodologically and theoretically. Methodologically, it has failed to situate the various styles of governmental practices. Theoretically, the socialist state has been uniformly conceptualized as homogeneous and monolithic. This has led to the adoption of a technorational concept of urban planning, which, in turn, has privileged the instrumental nature of urban planning knowledge. Finally, the literature has conveyed the myth that urban planning is a distinctive profession. In conclusion, the article suggests that all the above problems of the literature can be improved by adopting Foucault's concept of governmentality, which means that urban planning in China must be situated in political rationality and understood as a technology of government.
AB - This article reviews the literature on urban planning in China. The literature has traditionally viewed urban planning in terms of changing styles over time. It was found wanting both methodologically and theoretically. Methodologically, it has failed to situate the various styles of governmental practices. Theoretically, the socialist state has been uniformly conceptualized as homogeneous and monolithic. This has led to the adoption of a technorational concept of urban planning, which, in turn, has privileged the instrumental nature of urban planning knowledge. Finally, the literature has conveyed the myth that urban planning is a distinctive profession. In conclusion, the article suggests that all the above problems of the literature can be improved by adopting Foucault's concept of governmentality, which means that urban planning in China must be situated in political rationality and understood as a technology of government.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0034073558&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/08854120022092700
DO - 10.1177/08854120022092700
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:0034073558
SN - 0885-4122
VL - 14
SP - 347
EP - 366
JO - Journal of Planning Literature
JF - Journal of Planning Literature
IS - 3
ER -