The rapid rise of social infrastructure: Mapping the concept through a systematic scoping review

The concept of social infrastructure has recently gained much traction in academic, policy, and public discourses. However, it remains unclear what constitutes a social infrastructure and how the concept is applied in academic research. This systematic scoping review therefore synthesizes the various spaces, characteristics, and social functions that define a social infrastructure. A systematic literature search was conducted to identify articles on social infrastructures. In total, 100 articles met the inclusion criteria. From the literature we create a typology of spaces of social infrastructure: public institutions, commerce, recreational facilities, places of worship, transit, digital infrastructures and (groups of) people. We also address the organizational, social, and physical characteristics that affect their functioning. Moreover, we develop an overview of the various social functions that these spaces fulfill. These functions include serving as important sites for sociality, providing essential services, serving as a platform for collective action, functioning as spaces for identification and belonging, and social control. Finally, we consider how social infrastructures function in the context of disaster response. In addressing theoretical, methodological, and empirical gaps, this study ends with a discussion on how the concept of social infrastructure can be a valuable research approach. •Social infrastructures are public spaces that support community and social life.•Social infrastructures can foster sociality, collective action, and belonging.•Additionally, social infrastructures can offer essential services, like informal care.•These social functions are affected by organizational, social, and physical qualities.•Social infrastructures may reinforce social control and reinforce power structures.