Neighbourhoods and Employment between Spatial and Social Aspects. Cross Reflections on France, Italy and Québec

The concept of neighbourhood has been the subject of important debates and the empirical analysis of various neighbourhoods has also attracted attention over recent years. This article aims to analyse this concept from a theoretical perspective, focusing on both the physical (neighbourhood as a space) and relational dimensions. In fact, a precise conceptualization is extremely important for any analysis. However, neighbourhoods have not often been conceptualized in detail in the research dealing with the city and its neighbourhoods (Lupton, 2003; Siorda and Saenz, 2013; Moore et al., 2016). We will thus analyse the concept of neighbourhood and determine how the realities and characteristics of the working-class neighbourhood differ in Italy, France and Quebec. This will lead us to a comparison of urban and local social interventions in these countries in order to determine to what extent these contexts are similar or different.