Planning Theory
Core theories
Planning theory is less a single doctrine than a set of competing accounts of what planners do and should do. Learn the rational-comprehensive model (define goals, generate alternatives, evaluate, select, implement), Lindblom's disjointed incrementalism (successive limited comparisons), and Etzioni's mixed scanning (broad direction plus incremental steps). Davidoff's advocacy planning positions the planner as representative of underrepresented groups. Communicative/collaborative planning (Forester, Innes) treats planning as mediated consensus-building; it is powerful but must confront unequal power. Equity planning and just-city perspectives ask who benefits and who bears burdens.
Traps
Questions often test recognition, not advocacy. Do not equate incrementalism with 'muddling through' without purpose; mixed scanning is the corrective. Do not attribute Arnstein's ladder of participation to planning theory-it is a participation typology. Do not claim the rational model describes actual practice; it is normative. If a scenario shows a planner choosing among theories, match the role: technician (rational), advocate (Davidoff), facilitator (communicative), strategist (mixed scanning).
Worked example
A planner faces a contentious transit corridor with well-organized business groups and a fragmented tenant association. A communicative answer alone risks amplifying the louder voice. A stronger response combines mixed scanning (set a broad equity direction) with targeted advocacy (fund tenant capacity) and structured deliberation. Rule of thumb: name the theory, state its limit, and add a power-conscious corrective. Always tie theory to a concrete action a planner can take.
Exam rule
When two answers sound plausible, choose the one that is explicit about values, power, and consequences-not the one that sounds most neutral.