Main content

Middle Class Enclaves and Escapes

Laurie Taylor presents a special edition recorded at the British Sociological Association's 2013 conference.

Middle class enclaves and escapes. A special edition of Thinking Allowed partly recorded at the British Sociological Association's 2013 conference.

Privatised neighbourhoods and lifestyle migration are a global phenomenon. Increasingly, it seems, middle class people with sufficient capital are choosing to 'opt out' of urban environments, or, at least, to shield themselves from their more 'dangerous' elements, namely the poorer residents. Laurie Taylor talks to a range of academics who have researched the various manifestations of this desire for enclaves, escapes and the 'good life'. Can the broader social dynamics and conflicts of a society be understood by examining evolving form of housing and urban flight?

Maggy Lee talks about the rapid expansion of residential tourism and 'lifestyle migration' between Hong Kong and mainland China, as the 'well off' buy up high end, gated communities. Nick Osbaldiston looks at 'lifestyle migrants' in Australia who move to small, mainly coastal communities, representing a middle class 'takeover'. And Ceren Yalcin explores the proliferation of 'sealed off' housing complexes in Istanbul. They're joined by Rowland Atkinson who has done extensive research into gentrification, gated communities and housing inequality.

Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Available now

28 minutes

Maggy Lee

Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Hong Kong

Ìý


Find our more about Dr

Ìý


In search of a good life: Class, consumption and gated communities in lifestyle migration in Asia

Nick Osbaldiston

Lecturer in Sociology at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

Ìý


Find our more about Dr

Ìý

Ìý

The Global Middle Class – Enclaves And Escapes: Place, authenticity and equity: the present and future of lifestyle migration in Australia

Ceren Yalcin

Seminar Leader at Birkbeck College, University of London

Ìý


Find our more about

Ìý

Ìý

Living between walls and fences: A study of gated communities in Istanbul

Rowland Atkinson

Reader in Urban Studies and Criminology and co-director of the Centre for URBan Research

Ìý


Find our more about Dr

Broadcasts

  • Wed 8 May 2013 16:00
  • Mon 13 May 2013 00:15

Explore further with The Open University

´óÏó´«Ã½ Thinking Allowed is produced in partnership with The Open University

Download this programme

Subscribe to this programme or download individual episodes.

Podcast