REKONSTRUKSI STRUKTUR SOSIAL KRT BAGI PENGUKUHAN TADBIR URUS KEJIRANAN: IMPLIKASI TERHADAP PERANCANGAN DASAR MALAYSIA
RECONSTRUCTING THE SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF KRT FOR STRENGTHENING NEIGHBOURHOOD GOVERNANCE: IMPLICATIONS FOR MALAYSIA’S POLICY PLANNING
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJLGC.1143008Keywords:
Institusi Sosial (Social Institutions), Kawasan Rukun Tetangga (Neighbourhood Watch Areas), Norma Sosial (Social Norms), Perpaduan (Unity), Stratifikasi Sosial (Social Stratifications)Abstract
Kawasan Rukun Tetangga (KRT) merupakan institusi sosial akar umbi yang mempunyai liputan paling luas dalam rangka pembangunan perpaduan negara di Malaysia. Namun, perubahan gaya hidup moden, peningkatan stratifikasi sosioekonomi dan pemudaran norma kejiranan tradisional telah mengubah dinamika sosial komuniti setempat, sekali gus memberi kesan terhadap keberkesanan pelaksanaan dasar kerajaan di peringkat akar umbi. Walaupun KRT sering dinilai sebagai pelantar pelaksanaan program perpaduan, analisis empirikal terhadap struktur sosial KRT sebagai asas keberkesanan dasar masih terhad. Sehubungan itu, kajian ini bertujuan menilai struktur sosial KRT melalui tiga dimensi utama iaitu institusi sosial, stratifikasi sosial dan norma sosial bagi memahami implikasinya terhadap tadbir urus kejiranan dan perancangan dasar negara. Kajian ini menggunakan reka bentuk penyelidikan campuran yang melibatkan tinjauan nasional terhadap 4,264 responden daripada 32 KRT progresif di seluruh Malaysia, disokong oleh sesi perbincangan kumpulan berfokus bersama pemimpin komuniti dan pegawai kerajaan. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan wujudnya ketidakseimbangan penyertaan komuniti yang dipengaruhi oleh perbezaan kedudukan ekonomi, kepekatan peranan kepimpinan dalam kelompok tertentu serta kemerosotan amalan sosial harian seperti budaya memberi salam, membantu jiran dan gotong royong. Keadaan ini mencerminkan tanda awal gejala anomi pada peringkat komuniti yang berpotensi melemahkan keberkesanan pelaksanaan dasar berasaskan penyertaan. Berdasarkan dapatan tersebut, kajian ini mengemukakan implikasi dasar yang konkrit, termasuk keperluan membangunkan sistem data sosial KRT di peringkat nasional, reka bentuk program yang disesuaikan dengan variasi lokaliti serta pengukuhan kepimpinan rentas generasi sebagai intervensi strategik. Secara keseluruhan, kajian ini menegaskan bahawa KRT merupakan infrastruktur sosial kritikal yang perlu diintegrasikan secara sistematik dalam perancangan dasar negara bagi memastikan pelaksanaan dasar perpaduan dan pembangunan sosial yang lebih inklusif, berasaskan bukti dan mampan.
The Neighbourhood Watch Areas is a grassroots social institution with the widest reach within Malaysia’s national unity development framework. However, changes in modern lifestyles, increasing socioeconomic stratification, and the erosion of traditional neighbourhood norms have altered local community social dynamics, thereby affecting the effectiveness of government policy implementation at the grassroots level. Although KRT is often assessed as a platform for implementing unity programmes, empirical analysis of its social structure as a foundation for policy effectiveness remains limited. Accordingly, this study aims to examine the social structure of KRT through three key dimensions: social institutions, social stratification, and social norms to understand their implications for neighbourhood governance and national policy planning. This study adopts a mixed-methods research design involving a nationwide survey of 4,264 respondents from 32 progressive KRTs across Malaysia, supported by focus group discussions with community leaders and government officials. The findings reveal imbalances in community participation influenced by differences in economic position, the concentration of leadership roles within specific groups, and the decline of everyday social practices such as greeting neighbours, mutual assistance, and communal activities. These conditions reflect early signs of anomie at the community level, which have the potential to weaken the effectiveness of participation-based policy implementation. Based on these findings, the study proposes concrete policy implications, including the need to develop a national-level KRT social data system, the design of programmes tailored to local variations, and the strengthening of intergenerational leadership as a strategic intervention. Overall, this study emphasises that KRT constitutes a critical social infrastructure that must be systematically integrated into national policy planning to ensure more inclusive, evidence-based, and sustainable implementation of unity and social development policies.
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