Small and medium-sized towns

In various European countries, the field of urban studies has the distinction of being largely developed and structured based on concerns of public authorities, which led to the commission of studies and experimental research (Scherrer, 2010). This is certainly the case in France, where scholars (geographers, sociologists, economists, etc.) showed interest in small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) during the 1970s, when such places were the focus of national policies (see Chapter 6).