ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an overview of the decision-making context in which many social assessments are conducted. It outlines the major steps involved in an impact assessment, and discusses the special features of the social assessment process. The chapter describes the relationship between social assessment and the other components of a typical environmental impact assessment to illustrate the role of social assessment in one of its common applications and to provide a background. A comprehensive environmental impact assessment generally addresses the effects of a proposed action on both the natural and human environment. Social assessment and facilities/services/fiscal analysis are also closely linked. The relationship between social assessment and public involvement is also very close, since social assessment and public involvement are both concerned with: The public's values, the public's attitudes toward the proposed project, the distribution of political power in the community and issues of justice or equity.
