ABSTRACT
While metropolitan areas tend to be the core of recent scientific and policy debates about urban and regional development, much less research deals with small towns. However, this chapter argues that such research can have a specific contribution to the field of urban studies. After reviewing international theoretical debates about small towns, this chapter reevaluates the tradition of such studies in France throughout the twentieth century. We show that French research in geography and regional planning has changed its scientific approach to small towns over time, contributing to a certain dilution of the study object. Then, we discuss recent approaches to small towns and especially their economic dynamics. While some studies analyse the links of small towns to economic globalization, others consider how they can grow without benefitting from the influence of large cities. Using these different analytical grids helps to understand that small towns are diverse in France (and also in other national contexts). As a conclusion, we argue that the key variables for the development of small towns are their proximity or distance from big cities, their sources of economic development and the willingness and capacity of local actors to influence global forces.
