Needs Assessment in Cities: A Systematic Review of the Studies Conducted on the Assessment of the Urban Needs

The conditions of today’s urban life have made the citizens’ needs dramatically intricate and diverse. Conducting need assessments in cities is a measure to identify the citizens' important needs, pave the way for the meeting these needs, and identify the constant changes made in the urban life. The review and analysis of the needs assessments in cities having been conducted so far can be used as a means of introducing the best methods of carrying out needs assessment. To achieve the given purpose, this study has made an attempt to identify the methodological and conceptual weaknesses of the needs assessments carried out so far and offers some practical suggestions for improving the future needs assessments. This study is based on document analysis and systematic review of the previous studies. The methodological weaknesses found in the studied needs assessments in cities were as follows: the scope of the samples under the investigation and the aims of the analyses did not exactly match the methodologies; the surveys were limited to some closed questions; the data collection methods were not adequately justified and explained; the sampling techniques used for the studies were not appropriate; and the ways of extracting the concept of the needs were not faultless. A comprehensive approach for the classification of the urban needs based on the prevailing needs assessment models is conclusively suggested because both the citizens’ mentalities and objective goal-oriented models are to a great extent, if not fully, included in this approach.