The Imaginative Institution: Planning and Governance in Madrid

In this examination of urban planning and the development of planning institutions in the Spanish city of Madrid, Neuman (Texas A&M U.) posits a life cycle theory of institutional evolution that sees the constitutional images put forward by planners (e.g. slogans, mottos, symbols, or images) as playing a central role in institutional outcomes. He links this theory with cognitive theories of image formation and the idea of cognition as a means of structuring the institution, arguing that changing the constitutional image in the minds of the institution's members and constituents brings change to the institution itself. This however is a reciprocal relationship and significant contextual change for the institution can also lead to change in the constitutional image. Annotation c2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Michael Neuman is at the Faculty of the Built Environment, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia