Discipline and Order: Hostile architecture in Copenhagen
(2022) SOCM04 20221Sociology
Department of Sociology
- Abstract
- Hostile architecture is a tool used to control and regulate behavior, individuals, and groups in public spaces. This research explores the use, purpose, and meaning of hostile architecture in Copenhagen. To explore the phenomenon, I conducted fieldwork and semi-structured interviews. The fieldwork consisted of sensory ethnography within a phenomenological framework of data collection and analysis. The fieldwork was conducted in three locations in Copenhagen: Sundholm in the Amager borough, Hovedbanegården (the central train station), and the Tivoli amusement park. Furthermore, seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with people aged 25 to 35 living in the city. The theoretical framework focused on the concepts of order, as it was... (More)
- Hostile architecture is a tool used to control and regulate behavior, individuals, and groups in public spaces. This research explores the use, purpose, and meaning of hostile architecture in Copenhagen. To explore the phenomenon, I conducted fieldwork and semi-structured interviews. The fieldwork consisted of sensory ethnography within a phenomenological framework of data collection and analysis. The fieldwork was conducted in three locations in Copenhagen: Sundholm in the Amager borough, Hovedbanegården (the central train station), and the Tivoli amusement park. Furthermore, seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with people aged 25 to 35 living in the city. The theoretical framework focused on the concepts of order, as it was understood by Mary Douglas, discipline and governmentality attributed to Michel Foucault, and the process of moralization and moral regulation. The theories were used to enhance the understanding of hostile architecture through social, cultural, and economic contexts. The thesis is comprised of seven chapters that include two separate result chapters. The former is dedicated to the phenomenological description of the field, and the latter to the meaning-making process. The results show that hostile architecture in Copenhagen is widely used along with other spatial control methods and techniques to manipulate space without interfering too much with the designed environment. Hostile architecture is used to restore and maintain social order in public spaces through disciplinary and coercive techniques. (Less)
- Popular Abstract
- Think about the last time you sat on a park bench. Was it comfortable? My guess is no, but it offered you a place to sit. The bench might provide an armrest where you could lie your hand. But what if you are tired and just want to take a nap? That is where hostile architecture enters.
Hostile architecture is a design feature in public spaces that targets specific behavior, individuals, or groups. It is used to regain or maintain social order by manipulating the environment. That way, nobody behaves out of the ordinary. It is used in a network of methods aiming to make public spaces appear safe. Hostile architecture sends messages to poor people in the city: you are not welcome here.
In Copenhagen, surveillance, physical security, and... (More) - Think about the last time you sat on a park bench. Was it comfortable? My guess is no, but it offered you a place to sit. The bench might provide an armrest where you could lie your hand. But what if you are tired and just want to take a nap? That is where hostile architecture enters.
Hostile architecture is a design feature in public spaces that targets specific behavior, individuals, or groups. It is used to regain or maintain social order by manipulating the environment. That way, nobody behaves out of the ordinary. It is used in a network of methods aiming to make public spaces appear safe. Hostile architecture sends messages to poor people in the city: you are not welcome here.
In Copenhagen, surveillance, physical security, and symbolic security are combined with buildings and designs to control people and influence their behavior to act according to society's norms. People associated hostile architecture with convenience, homelessness, and positivity. For example, a public bench with an attached table offers them a place to put down their cup of coffee or drink. Examples of hostile architecture can be associated with homelessness; it is hard to ignore when people know the purpose. That is uncomfortable because it affects their routines and how they move around the city. However, hostile architecture can also be interpreted as a positive act. One where authorities use it to encourage homeless people to seek shelter. That act interprets hostile architecture differently to arrange it in such a way that it fits their worldview. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9098250
- author
- Karlsson, Egill LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- SOCM04 20221
- year
- 2022
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Hostile architecture, Copenhagen, Sensory ethnography, Phenomenology, Order, Discipline
- language
- English
- id
- 9098250
- date added to LUP
- 2022-08-26 10:53:58
- date last changed
- 2022-08-26 10:53:58
@misc{9098250,
abstract = {{Hostile architecture is a tool used to control and regulate behavior, individuals, and groups in public spaces. This research explores the use, purpose, and meaning of hostile architecture in Copenhagen. To explore the phenomenon, I conducted fieldwork and semi-structured interviews. The fieldwork consisted of sensory ethnography within a phenomenological framework of data collection and analysis. The fieldwork was conducted in three locations in Copenhagen: Sundholm in the Amager borough, Hovedbanegården (the central train station), and the Tivoli amusement park. Furthermore, seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with people aged 25 to 35 living in the city. The theoretical framework focused on the concepts of order, as it was understood by Mary Douglas, discipline and governmentality attributed to Michel Foucault, and the process of moralization and moral regulation. The theories were used to enhance the understanding of hostile architecture through social, cultural, and economic contexts. The thesis is comprised of seven chapters that include two separate result chapters. The former is dedicated to the phenomenological description of the field, and the latter to the meaning-making process. The results show that hostile architecture in Copenhagen is widely used along with other spatial control methods and techniques to manipulate space without interfering too much with the designed environment. Hostile architecture is used to restore and maintain social order in public spaces through disciplinary and coercive techniques.}},
author = {{Karlsson, Egill}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Discipline and Order: Hostile architecture in Copenhagen}},
year = {{2022}},
}