South African housing policy and housing policy research: theoretical discourse in the post-apartheid era

[摘要] English: The aim of this thesis is to provide an integrated epistemological analysis of the theoreticaldiscourse on housing policy and research implementation relevant to the South African context.Chapter 1 comprises the rationale for the thesis by emphasising that there is as yet no comprehensivestudy that encapsulates the theoretical foundations of housing policy research in South Africa. It isfurther highlighted that three decades of contemporary theoretical developments on housing inWestern Europe have largely gone unnoticed in the South African scholarly environment. By drawingon the traditions of post-structuralism, social constructionism and critical discourse analysis,methodological ways of addressing inadequate theory development on housing in post-apartheidSouth Africa are further explored. Chapter 2 is devoted to an overview of housing theory and housingdiscourses in developing countries. The theoretical concepts and approaches discussed in Chapter 2are related to the Marxist and the neo-Marxist schools of thought, neo-liberalism, developmenttheories and to the notion of political economy. Chapter 3 is an assessment of housing theory anddiscourse in Western Europe and contains an extensive overview of the development of theory in theEuropean context. Specific focus falls on welfare state theoretical developments, while the value ofcomparative and historical methodologies in interpreting welfare state theories is expounded. InChapter 4, the historical development of housing policies both in Western Europe and in developingcountries is outlined. Conceptual themes in this chapter centre on the dualities between formal andinformal housing discourses, the application of welfare state intervention in providing housing for thepoor and for the low-wage working class, and mention is made of the contested, multidimensionalideologies that feature in ownership discourses. Chapter 5 deals with the relevance of the differenttheoretical frameworks in re-interpreting the historical narrative and the ideological underpinnings ofhousing policy development in South Africa. The presence of welfare state theories within the currentSouth African housing policy is illuminated, thereby paving the way for expansion on these theories infuture scholarly discourses on housing in the post-apartheid era. In Chapter 6, social constructivism isemployed to indicate how theoretical concepts on housing policy may be applied in implementationprojects at grass-roots level. The case studies endeavour to provide a platform conducive to theevolvement of housing policies that will be more socially and culturally responsive than were thoseprior to the completion of this thesis. The outputs and contribution of this thesis aim to encouragedialogues about the value of theory, research and implementation. The thesis has generated bothacademic and creative outputs. The academic outputs include two accredited publications and thecreative outputs comprise buildings either completed or in the process of completion. The thesishighlights the relevance of evolving indigenous cultural practices in spawning housing policydiscourses for the future. By specifically embracing principles of informality, both self-help buildingtechnologies and skills transfer have significant contributions to make as regards addressing housingshortages in the country in geographical locations like the Free State Province and other rural areas.

[发布机构] University of the Free State