TY - JOUR
T1 - The typology of the American metropolis
T2 - monocentricity, polycentricity, or generalized dispersion?
AU - Hajrasouliha, Amir H.
AU - Hamidi, Shima
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Copyright:
Copyright 2017 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2017/3/16
Y1 - 2017/3/16
N2 - Although the spatial structure of employment in large US metropolitan regions is a well-researched topic, few studies focus on medium-sized and small US metropolitan regions. Consequently, there is no overall typology relating small-to-medium urban form to employment distribution. We address this gap by investigating the spatial structure of employment in 356 metropolitan regions. We conceptualize six typologies based on three categories that have overlapping properties: “monocentricity,” “polycentricity,” and “generalized dispersion.” The study has three main findings. First, the three types of urban form that we identify as “hybrid” outnumber the three “pure” types by almost four to one. Second, job dispersion is a dominant characteristic in almost 70% of all metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) (including the hybrid types), and polycentricity (56.7% of MSAs) is somewhat more common than monocentricity. Third, there is a strong relationship between population size and density. The population of medium-sized metropolitan areas is generally more dispersed than that of small and large metropolitan areas. Polycentricy emerges mostly in large metropolitan regions, while monocentrity is found in both small and large metropolitan regions.
AB - Although the spatial structure of employment in large US metropolitan regions is a well-researched topic, few studies focus on medium-sized and small US metropolitan regions. Consequently, there is no overall typology relating small-to-medium urban form to employment distribution. We address this gap by investigating the spatial structure of employment in 356 metropolitan regions. We conceptualize six typologies based on three categories that have overlapping properties: “monocentricity,” “polycentricity,” and “generalized dispersion.” The study has three main findings. First, the three types of urban form that we identify as “hybrid” outnumber the three “pure” types by almost four to one. Second, job dispersion is a dominant characteristic in almost 70% of all metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) (including the hybrid types), and polycentricity (56.7% of MSAs) is somewhat more common than monocentricity. Third, there is a strong relationship between population size and density. The population of medium-sized metropolitan areas is generally more dispersed than that of small and large metropolitan areas. Polycentricy emerges mostly in large metropolitan regions, while monocentrity is found in both small and large metropolitan regions.
KW - Employment centers
KW - generalized dispersion
KW - metropolitan spatial structure
KW - monocentricity
KW - polycentricity
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U2 - 10.1080/02723638.2016.1165386
DO - 10.1080/02723638.2016.1165386
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84962476244
SN - 0272-3638
VL - 38
SP - 420
EP - 444
JO - Urban Geography
JF - Urban Geography
IS - 3
ER -