defining neighborhood, analysis of two different approaches: expert-oriented approach of theorists and perceptual approach of residents

The different offered definitions of “neighborhood unit” in various approaches andviewpoints by different specialized views, on the one hand; and excessive attention to expertorientedand reduced viewpoints as well as neglecting residents’ perception of the neighborhood on the other handnecessitate providing a complete and exact definition of neighborhood which can cover all approachesand viewpoints. therefore, this paper applied the content analysis research method – descriptive contentanalysis to analyze the numerous important neighborhood definitions meticulously. it scrutinizes twodifferent approaches, specialized views (expertoriented) and the perceptual approach (residentoriented)in order to extract the most appropriate and repeated indicators, and finally introduce a comprehensivedefinition of neighborhood according to these indicators. result show significant differences existbetween neighborhood characteristics according to the definitions given by experts, famous theoriesand perceptual understanding of residents. for instance the definitions of neighborhood center(s), landuses, boundaries of neighborhood and etc. were used to derive the final appropriate indicators obtainedfrom both approaches. the indicators are: neighborhood boundaries including streets and traffic roads;natural elements and social distinctions such as racial or ethnical distinctions; neighborhood area as itis perceptible for residents (50500 acres); neighborhood land use (providing daily and weekly needs,appropriate access); economic social homogeneity (social class, and income level of residents, landvalue); social interaction (social relations and residents’ participation); and semantic and particularsymbols of neighborhood (natural and historical characteristics and neighborhood meanings).