Neighborhood relations in gated communities

The article presents a brief analytical overview of a sociological study of the neighborhood relations among residents of the fenced residential areas. The concept of neighborhood is interpreted, and its connection with the concepts of community and space is described. The paper analyzes the previous studies of neighboring relationships, particularly in the fenced areas. It is noted that due to the existence of close and positive neighborhood relations, the fenced areas are really gated communities. The object of the study is a townhouse township Prigorodny Prostor that is adjacent to Novosibirsk. The research method is the content analysis of the forum of residents in this township. The analysis was conducted according to the following criteria: the topics and messages containing a call for residents to make acquaintances with their neighbors and work together, a neighbors’ request for help in any issue or an attempt to stop deviant neighbors violating community order. 52 topics containing 3095 messages were selected for the analysis of the neighborhood relations in a gated community. 284 people were their authors. The study revealed that the mutual acquaintance is of particular importance to the residents of the gated community Prigorodny Prostor. It is concluded that mutual assistance is the most common feature of neighboring relations in this community.