Extended Abstract
Background and Objectives: The transition from tradition to modernity, which began about a century ago in Afghanistan, has deeply affected the core of society and, consequently, its architecture and urban fabric. The planned housing pattern in Kabul has been shaped by Afghanistan’s historical and political events, which have, in turn, influenced the city’s social structure. It is crucial to examine the evolution of housing within the socio-political context of Afghanistan, especially in Kabul, which serves as a model for these changes and reflects the country’s future needs. To design housing that is both suitable and compatible with user requirements, it is essential to study and analyze the various factors that influence housing development. This research aims to explore the relationship between the architectural transformation of housing and the changes in the socio-political structure of society, while also analyzing the factors affecting the transformation of planned housing in Kabul from the 1960s to 2021.
Methods: The research paradigm is qualitative, utilizing a survey method, a questionnaire with a Likert scale, and exploratory factor analysis to examine the impact of socio-political factors on the planned housing pattern of Kabul City. Initially, the historical, political, and social contexts of Afghanistan were considered to identify the components affecting Kabul’s planned housing. These components include population, immigration, social interactions, social groups, family structure, education, security, social justice, and political factors. To assess these socio-political components and determine the key factors driving the transformation of planned housing in Kabul over the past six decades, a survey methodology was used. This involved a 40-question questionnaire with a Likert scale, followed by data analysis. The questionnaire was administered using SPSS software version 26. The KMO value for this data set is 0.521, and the Bartlett’s test value exceeds 95% confidence, confirming the appropriateness of factor analysis for this data set.
Findings: The exploratory factor analysis method was employed to extract ten factors from the variables in the questionnaire, with eigenvalues greater than one. These factors accounted for more than 76% of the cumulative changes. In this analysis, variables with factor loadings greater than 0.4 were placed under the factor with the highest numerical value of factor loadings. The indicators placed under each factor and their conceptual analysis were used to determine the factor’s name, based on the factor’s common characteristics. The exploratory factor analysis of the socio-political components affecting planned housing development in Kabul city over the past six decades indicates that social interactions, internal politics, education and training, housing planning, social trends, social system, women and family, population decline, foreign policy population movement are the most significant factors influencing housing development.
Conclusion: The results of the research indicate that social interactions have had the greatest impact (21%) on the architectural evolution of planned housing in Kabul over the past six decades. The research findings reveal that key factors influencing planned housing in Kabul over the past decades include Afghanistan’s domestic policy (10.1%), education and training (8.5%), housing planning (8.5%), social trends (6.2%), the social system (5.5%), the role of women and family (4.7%), population decline (4.3%), foreign policy (3.9%), and population displacement (3.3%), among other factors. The impact of these factors has fluctuated significantly over time. The majority of changes in housing occurred during the last two decades, which coincided with the period of the Islamic Republic. In contrast, the impact on the planned housing construction process was negative during the period of the Islamic State and the period of the Islamic Emirate. The growth of urbanization in Kabul has increased significantly during the last two decades, with the population of the city increasing sixfold during this period. This has led to a corresponding increase in the construction of settlements, residential complexes, institutional and planned apartments, and high-rise buildings. Many of these constructions have been made in imitation of non-native and foreign examples without consideration of the social and cultural characteristics of the society. Additionally, the examination of the patterns of traditional and planned housing in Kabul City reveals that the aforementioned factors have led to alterations in architectural indicators, including housing typology, architectural style, mass and space ratio, spatial diversity, access method, gender-specific space, interior space organization, communication, horizontal and vertical circulation, architectural decorations and details, facades, materials, and techniques.