Researching milieu-specific perceptions of risk, (in)security, and vulnerability—A conceptual approach for understanding the inequality and segregation nexus in urban spaces

Abstract

European cities are characterized by a growing social inequality, residential segregation as well as socio-cultural differentiation. Consequently, the capability of urban residents to protect themselves or to resume normality after a large-scale disaster is unequally distributed. In this chapter, we develop and exemplify a conceptual approach to assess milieu-specific perceptions of risk, (in)security, and vulnerability and further this research within the conceptual framework of sociological disaster research. We argue that approaches to communicate risk prevention, to implement sustainable adaptation strategies, or to reduce unequally distributed vulnerabilities cannot be successful without the engagement of the inhabitant’s subjective perception patterns. A milieu-oriented research approach allows for the linking of the subjective dimension of risk, vulnerability, and (in)security with the social and spatial distribution of resources and capital (Bourdieu in Die feinen Unterschiede. Kritik der gesellschaftlichen Urteilskraft. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main, 1987), which both form and reproduce social and spatial segregation (Scheffer and Voss in Erfolg durch Schlüsselqualifikationen? „Heimliche Lehrpläne“ und Basiskompetenzen im Zeichen der Globalisierung. Pabst Science Publishers, Berlin, Bremen, Miami et al., pp 102–115, 2008). Using a case study in a mid-sized German city as a basis, we will sketch the theoretical approach first, then exemplify it with empirical results, and close by drawing some conclusions on milieu-specific perceptions of risks, (in)security, and vulnerability in urban spaces.