Narrating Gatedness in Urban China: A Comparative Study of Physical, Cognitive, and Social Forms of the Work Unit and the Commodity Gated Community.

Abstract

This is a comparative study depicting two types of gated residential settlement in urban China: work-unit compounds that were heavily constructed during the socialist development period, and commodity gated communities that have been exponentially growing since the economic reform in 1978. Today, two types of gated settlements accommodate the majority of Chinese urban inhabitants, so much so that gatedness is beyond an optional mode of residence but is the default way of life. Moving beyond the conventional account of gatedness as an abstract design concept or a symptom of social pathology, this study illustrates the real-world phenomenon of gatedness deriving from empirical studies, and examines how gatedness is experienced from the place user's perspective, on an individual level and at the small geographical scale. The investigation is based on fieldwork conducted in two case study neighborhoods representing the commodity gated community and the work unit, respectively. Place experiences in two types of gatedness are unfolded on physical, socio-behavioral, and psychological dimensions. Specifically, the study examines: (1) morphological and configurational structures of the two gated forms, and their relationships in light of the historical and cultural contexts; (2) residents’ range of social networks and activity patterns in the public spaces (3) residents’ motivations in choosing their residence, and their conceptualization and assessment of “sense of community”. Based on these investigations, the study’s conclusions depict the dynamics of “gated forms,” “gated living,” and “gated minds” in (re)producing Chinese urban-gatedness over time. The findings also convey the possibilities and capabilities of gated community physical features that would minimize any negative consequences associated with gatedness, with regard to environmental, behavioral, and social well-being.