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In The Social Significance of the Neighbourhood the negative image of the social quality of poor urban districts is critically examined based on research in two districts of The Hague. This investigation focuses on the extent to which living in a certain quarter could constitute as an obstacle to social mobility and what role social relations play between local residents therein. Based on interviews with residents in a poor and a mixed neighborhood this study outlines the role that the neighborhood and local residents play in the social and working lives of residents. - In De sociale betekenis van de buurt wordt de negatieve beeldvorming over de sociale kwaliteit van arme stadswijken aan de tand gevoeld aan de hand van onderzoek in twee Haagse wijken. Het onderzoek richt zich op de vraag in hoeverre het wonen in een achterstandswijk een belemmering kan vormen voor sociale mobiliteit en welke rol sociale relaties tussen buurtbewoners daarin spelen. Aan de hand van interviews met bewoners in een arme en een gemengde wijk wordt een beeld geschetst van de rol die de buurt en buurtbewoners spelen in het sociale en werkende leven van bewoners.

In The Social Significance of the Neighbourhood the negative image of the social quality of poor urban districts is critically examined based on research in two districts of The Hague. This investigation focuses on the extent to which living in a certain quarter could constitute as an obstacle to social mobility and what role social relations play between local residents therein. Based on interviews with residents in a poor and a mixed neighborhood this study outlines the role that the neighborhood and local residents play in the social and working lives of residents.

This paper explores different explanations for the continuing presence of a large share of middle-class households in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the Netherlands, a seeming anomaly to middle-class residential practices of disaffiliation and elective belonging identified in the research literature. In-depth interviews with middle-class residents in urban restructuring neighbourhoods in Amsterdam and The Hague provide insight into the way in which these residents make sense of and engage with their residential surroundings. The study found that respondents downplay neighbourhood problems and validate living in an urban restructuring area through a value-for-money discourse. At the same time, they display subtle ways of disaffiliating from the neighbourhood through both discursive and socio-spatial practices in everyday life.

AbstractOne of the key challenges in the study of neighbourhood effects on work is to understand the pathways through which disadvantaged neighbourhoods impact the employment opportunities of residents. Endogenous explanations for neighbourhood effects focus on social life in these neighbourhoods, identifying mechanisms of social isolation, deviant work ethics and neighbourhood disorder. This article studies these mechanisms in a low‐income neighbourhood in the Netherlands. The case study shows that unfavourable socioeconomic outcomes can be indirect and unintended consequences of actions and choices in everyday life that are not directly concerned with work. Nevertheless, these individual actions and choices reflect local social practices that are influenced by the marginalized context in which residents lead their lives.

The assumed negative effects of living in a low-income neighbourhood on the social mobility of already-poor residents are central to the current political debate about disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the Netherlands. A case study in The Hague addresses the question of which social mechanisms in the daily life of residents might contribute to reduced social mobility in the long run. On the basis of interviews with neighbourhood experts and residents about local social networks, job search strategies and work ethics, evidence can be found for limited opportunity structures and negative socialisation processes. However, the findings suggest that these mechanisms work more subtly than generally assumed in the research literature, as the specific socio-spatial context also provides opportunities and negative effects are selective rather than generic.

Despite the fact that social mix is an essential component of urban policies in Western Europe, it remains unclear at what spatial scale housing diversification programs may be most effective. When people with different backgrounds, household compositions, and lifestyles live in close proximity to one another, the emergence of close social ties is not always guaranteed. On the one hand, living in socially mixed environments may create bridges between residents of different social positions. On the other hand, it can lead to processes of social distancing and reproduce negative stereotypes. This article aims to provide insights into how these diverging experiences of social closeness or distance relate to place-specific features such as housing design, management practices, and the structure of local facilities. Lessons are drawn from a qualitative study on resident experiences of living with difference in a fine-grained mixed-tenure development in a newly built neighborhood in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.