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The article analyses the process by which the space of selected suburban housing estates acquires a social meaning. This process is an effect of the interaction of two forces: the developers' discourse affecting the new inhabitants and the actual spatial practice of the latter that develops in the course of their residence. The author has analysed the content of advertising and information material concerning new suburban housing estates, and researched how the key themes of the developers' discourse are reconstructed in the everyday spatial practices of the inhabitants. The analysis shows that the social ideal of living in the suburbs differs from the vision presented by the developers' discourse and the practice of such residence depends on different social and spatial resources available in a given area.

This book is an empirical study of a central European city focused on the political process. The book aims at presenting political practices as a form of the political in the institutional and civic sphere of the city. The cases provided focus on the issues of the urban symbolic sphere, architecture, sports, subcultures and urban movements.

AbstractThe study aims to analyze inhabitants' perceptions vis‐a‐vis the actual demographic, economic, functional, and land use transformation taking place in the peripheral area of Kłodzko County in the Sudetes Mountains in southwestern Poland. Recently, new socio‐economic processes can be observed in the region, suggesting a revival after a period of stagnation. It employs qualitative data from semi‐structured interviews and observation, and quantitative data from an online survey. Findings on inhabitants' perception are discussed against evidence from diverse statistical databases based on the literature. Results show that changes to physical built environment are most perceived, but tourism is seen as the main positive driver. The most acute negative change is depopulation, which is also considered to have a damaging effect on the transformation. The results show some disparities in perceptions across different socio‐demographic and spatially defined categories of inhabitants, as well as ambiguity of assessment of rural transformations that are interpreted in relation to the socio‐economic context of interviewees. The study contributes to discussion on perceived and actual change in rural areas by pointing to patterns of perception. It provides social feedback on changes and depicts collective attitudes towards rural revival—knowledge that is necessary to formulate policies tailored to site‐specific preconditions.