Analysis of the ethical decision-making and decision-taking process of urban planners and managers based on the findings of the detailed plan review of District 22 of Tehran municipality

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 M.A. in Urban Planning, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Iran University of Art, Tehran, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Urban Planning, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Iran University of Art, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Urban development plans and their lack of desirability across different dimensions have always been the topic of discussion. The role of planners and managers as professionals responsible for preparing, directing, and implementing plans cannot be denied. On the other hand, the entry of new activists into the field of planning and the redistribution of power between them has an impact on the planning system. Relationships that have led to decision-making and decision-taking contrary to the framework of professional ethics and as a result of not achieving the expected results in urban programs, create many ethical challenges in different fields. Therefore, reminding urban planners and managers of the ethical issues inherent in the urban planning profession is always on the agenda, considering the direct and indirect impact of their decisions on public life. The starting point of the current research is the investigation of ethical codes in urban planning and management and their impact on urban development plans. Then, by focusing on the framework of professional ethics, the decision-making of planners and decision-taking of managers in the process of preparing and approving the detailed plan of the  District 22 of Tehran municipality has been evaluated using both content and procedural approaches. Due to the specialized questions in the interviews, the statistical community under investigation includes specialists, experts, planners, and city managers who had enough information about the process of preparing and approving the detailed plan and in this regard, the snowball sampling method has been used. The interviews include a diverse range of individuals in the fields of urban planning and management, each presenting a different point of view according to their current position, in which contributes to a more comprehensive analysis. Qualitative data from 15 semi-structured interviews were classified using MaxQDA software and analyzed using comparative content analysis. The participants were challenged for their ethical thinking and decisions in the process of preparing and approving the detailed plan of the District 22 of Tehran. According to the findings of the research, no specific ethical guidelines have been mentioned in this process; however, planners and managers based on the understanding of institutional values in their profession, were committed to maintaining the principles of professional ethics. The influence of some powerful groups was a fundamental challenge from the beginning of the plan preparation, and significantly impacted the direction of the plan, contrary to ethical values. Managers' relations with each other and with political institutions resulted in a wider monopoly of decisions and the dominance of relation over moral decisions and the lack of coordination between managers and planners were clearly expressed by participants. The dominance of the central power over the urban management structure resulted in decisions that favored a particular group. Overall, the application of ethical issues in the process of planning the Detailed Plan of the District 22 was evaluated more favorably by the planners than by the managers, a difference that managers   to the issue of executive considerations.

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References

 
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Journal of Architecture and Urban Planning
Volume 17, Issue 44
September 2024
Pages 97-114

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