Short answer
When assessing social sustainability in design projects, ensure your chosen multi-criteria methods are genuinely integrated into the decision-making process and that you have a clear strategy for handling input from multiple stakeholders.
- Field
- Sustainability
- Source
- Sustainability (2023)
- Method
- Systematic Literature Review
- Sample
- 42 studies
- Evidence
- Moderate effect
A systematic review of 42 studies reveals that while multi-criteria decision-making methods are frequently employed to assess social sustainability in the built environment, there's a need for more robust engagement with group decision-making nuances and a comprehensive yet manageable set of criteria. This sustainability research insight is drawn from a 2023 study published in Sustainability. Using Systematic literature review with 42 studies, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When assessing social sustainability in design projects, ensure your chosen multi-criteria methods are genuinely integrated into the decision-making process and that you have a clear strategy for handling input from multiple stakeholders.
Social Sustainability Assessment in the Built Environment: A Multi-Criteria Framework
A systematic review of 42 studies reveals that while multi-criteria decision-making methods are frequently employed to assess social sustainability in the built environment, there's a need for more robust engagement with group decision-making nuances and a comprehensive yet manageable set of criteria.
Sustainability · 2023
Key Findings
- 01The most frequently considered social sustainability issues were 'Impacts in Community' and 'Employment'.
- 02Multi-criteria decision-making/aiding (MCDM/A) methods were prevalent, but not always used for explicit decision-making.
- 03While multiple decision-makers were often involved, issues related to group decision-making were frequently inadequately addressed.
Application
Design takeaway
When assessing social sustainability in design projects, ensure your chosen multi-criteria methods are genuinely integrated into the decision-making process and that you have a clear strategy for handling input from multiple stakeholders.
How to apply
When initiating a design project with social sustainability goals, select or develop a multi-criteria assessment tool that clearly links to decision outcomes and includes protocols for stakeholder consensus.
Project actions
- 01When choosing criteria for your design project, make sure they cover community impact and employment.
- 02If you use multi-criteria analysis, explain how it directly informs your design decisions.
- 03Consider how you will manage feedback and decisions if multiple people are involved in your project.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Comprehensive systematic review methodology.
- +Analysis of a significant number of relevant studies.
Limitations
The identified methods might be complex to implement fully within the scope of a typical design project. The focus on 'built environment' may require adaptation for other design fields.
Reliability & validity
The reliability of the review is enhanced by its systematic methodology and the use of multiple databases. Validity is supported by the synthesis of findings across numerous studies, providing a broad overview of the field.
Think critically
How can designers ensure that multi-criteria social sustainability assessments lead to genuinely improved social outcomes rather than just a score?
Design Principles
"Social sustainability assessments should be comprehensive in scope, methodologically rigorous, and practically applicable to real-world decision-making, particularly in collaborative environments."
Understanding the current landscape of social sustainability assessment is crucial for designers and researchers aiming to create more equitable and community-focused built environments. This insight highlights areas for improvement in methodology and criteria selection to ensure assessments are both thorough and practical.
What This Means for Your Design
When designing buildings or urban spaces, it's important to think about how they affect people and jobs. Researchers often use special methods with many criteria to check this, but sometimes they don't use these methods to actually make decisions, and they don't always handle well when many people have different opinions.
How to use in your project
- 1.Use this review to justify the selection of specific social sustainability criteria and multi-criteria decision-making methods in your design project.
- 2.Reference the findings on group decision-making to explain how you will involve and manage stakeholder input.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
This research highlights the importance of using multi-criteria decision-making methods for assessing social sustainability in the built environment, with a particular focus on community impacts and employment. It suggests that while these methods are common, their application in actual decision-making and the management of group preferences require further attention. For this design project, a selection of criteria focusing on [mention specific criteria] will be employed, utilizing a [mention method] approach to inform design decisions and address potential stakeholder input.
Source
Sustainability
Multiple-Criteria Methods for Assessing Social Sustainability in the Built Environment: A Systematic Review
journal · 2023
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about social sustainability assessment in the built environment: a multi-criteria framework?
- When assessing social sustainability in design projects, ensure your chosen multi-criteria methods are genuinely integrated into the decision-making process and that you have a clear strategy for handling input from multiple stakeholders. Evidence: Sustainability (2023).
- Why does "Social Sustainability Assessment in the Built Environment: A Multi-Criteria Framework" matter for design?
- Understanding the current landscape of social sustainability assessment is crucial for designers and researchers aiming to create more equitable and community-focused built environments. This insight highlights areas for improvement in methodology and criteria selection to ensure assessments are both thorough and practical.
- How can designers apply this research?
- When assessing social sustainability in design projects, ensure your chosen multi-criteria methods are genuinely integrated into the decision-making process and that you have a clear strategy for handling input from multiple stakeholders.
- What were the main findings?
- The most frequently considered social sustainability issues were 'Impacts in Community' and 'Employment'.. Multi-criteria decision-making/aiding (MCDM/A) methods were prevalent, but not always used for explicit decision-making.. While multiple decision-makers were often involved, issues related to group decision-making were frequently inadequately addressed.
- What research method was used?
- Systematic Literature Review with 42 studies.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2023 journal from Sustainability.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When initiating a design project with social sustainability goals, select or develop a multi-criteria assessment tool that clearly links to decision outcomes and includes protocols for stakeholder consensus.
- What are the limitations?
- The review's findings are based on published literature, which may not capture all aspects of social sustainability assessment in practice. The focus on 'built environment' may exclude other relevant contexts.