CONSEQUENCES OF RESIDENTIAL DENSITY FOR URBAN LIFE

Typical objectives of urban planners are reviewed and 3 are selected as relevant to this study which focuses on density as a measure of the number of dwellings per given land area, as distinguished from number of persons per room. Those selected: (1) consider the juxtaposition of housing and other land uses; (2) relate density to desired patterns of social interaction; and (3) by clustering dwellings around a common open space, aim at creating a sense of place or spatial identity to contribute to residents' feelings of satisfaction. The data from the study are presented to investigate the relationship of these objectives to the reactions of residents living in neighborhoods of varying densities. In general, residents of higher density neighborhoods did not know their neighbor better and were less satisfied with their neighborhood than those residing in areas of lower density. These results indicate that some aspects of behavior, particularly social interaction, may not related to dwelling unit densities as customarily assumed by planners, designers and social scientists. C[1