TOWARDS SOCIAL MANAGEMENT IN HDB AREA OFFICES

Abstract

Public housing must be viewed as a continuum of social evolution progress. As such, the human aspects of estate management ultimately surface in prominence. Social management is thus primarily concerned with the development of collective action for the advancement of community welfare. Although lacking in precise definition, it has been recognized as an area involving human relationships and responses to their needs. Inevitably, the process of its formulation and implementation must occur at the grassroot level. The urban environment wherein almost three-quarters of the nation live comprise a complex network of social problems. Added to this are the rising expectations in social demands. Hence, the approach to social management cannot be simplistic. It does not merely involve the comprehensive exploration of prevalent problems. The tasks of refining, extending and adapting insights, perspectives and methods so as to further understand the social role required, are also areas of concern. In principle, social management is an integral part of estate management. As such, shifting the role emphasis does not connote detracting from the primary stress on physical management. It implies complemental functions of both processes. In the final analysis, the goal of social management is the creation of a common spirit of responsibility and awareness of the role the community itself must play in attaining social progress.