Markus Gmür
Professor
PER 21 - B340
+41 26 300 8405
The Making of Solidarity
Social and digital networks in neighborhoods
This research project investigates how community cohesion and solidarity can be strengthened in new, urbanized and digitalized neighbourhoods. At a time when mobility, diversity and digital networking are changing society, the concept of “neighborhood” is more fluid and complex than ever.
This project is a collaboration between the Chair of Prof. Markus Gmür and the Chair of Muriel Surdez, both from the Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences.
Aim
New urban areas have become the daily living environment for many people. A positive and cohesive community life in these areas fosters security, quality of life, well-being, and social resilience.
Our goal is to understand how participation and solidarity contribute to the development of vibrant urban neighborhoods. We aim to explore the factors that influence the sense of community and togetherness, and to identify the conditions under which these dynamics are shaped.
We examine both physical social interactions and virtual encounters on online community platforms organized by neighbourhoods, as well as their interplay. We are particularly interested in the diverse forms of social participation and community building, both online and offline as potential ways to develop the sense of belonging and cohesion.
Methodologies
The project is inter- and transdisciplinary in nature, with researchers from collective action and urban sociology collaborating with researchers from political science and organizational studies. Both quantitative and qualitative, ethnographic and theory-based approaches will be pursued.
We conduct our fieldwork in five residential areas in German- and French-speaking Switzerland:
- Grütlimooshof (Adliswil),
- Rietpark (Schlieren),
- CeCe-Areal (Zürich),
- Plaines-du-Loup (Lausanne),
- Ancienne-Papeterie (Marly).
In order to examine neighborhood life in the digital spheres, we are working with the online community platform BeUnity.
Project team
Muriel Surdez Sainsaulieu
Professor
PER 21 - G304
+41 26 300 8243
Publications and presentations
Betzler, D. (2024). The making of neighbourhood communities: Urban and digital spaces of common?, “Digital Communities - Social proximity from a spatial distance”, Institute of Social Science, Kiel University, in cooperation with Ferdinand-Tönnies Society and German Sociological Association (DGS), Section Sociological Theory, 18-19 July 2014, Christian-Albrechts Universität zu Kiel.