Community development and social actor theories: a case study in Montréal (Canada) G. Sénécal Institut national de la recherche scientifique, INRS Centre Urbanisation Culture Société, Université du Québec, Canada
Received: 21 Oct 2011 – Published in Soc. Geogr. Discuss.: 28 Feb 2012 Revised: 26 Jun 2012 – Accepted: 26 Jul 2012 – Published: 31 Aug 2012
Abstract. Research focusing on community development processes is
increasingly making use of the notion of actor. Actors are engaged in a
system of actions. A range of sociological theories has given rise to the
various stances adopted by social actors, including the theatrical actor, the
strategic actor, the actor-network, or the reflexive actor. We review these
theories in an attempt to define an analytical framework by employing what
we call a bricolage methodology. The aim is to gain insight on the
interactions that bind together the various stakeholders by function (acting
and the actors' roles) in the fields of action (the scenes of interaction and
real interventions) and on effects (the results of these actions). We then
propose to apply our analytical framework to a case study on the process of
developing an action plan in the Villeray district of Montréal (Québec,
Canada).
Citation: Sénécal, G.: Community development and social actor theories: a case study in Montréal (Canada), Soc. Geogr., 7, 37-46, doi:10.5194/sg-7-37-2012, 2012.