Introduction:
“Rationality” is one of the most influencing epistemological frameworks in urban planning, though this concept is criticized and denied by post-modernist advocates. The critics believe that it is the “post-rationality” era in urban planning. Furthermore, the concept of rationality has become a negative concept as it has been taken synonymous with an uncompromising technical and professional superiority. According to critics, rationality ignores the other types of knowledge - such as subjective impressions, common sense, social and human values, intuitions and so on – and only justify positivism and value - free knowledge. These criticisms might be due to decreasing the concept of “rationality” to “instrumental rationality”, while there is a variety of concepts of rationality which are different from each other.
 This article tries to focus on and develop the necessity and importance of the dialectical challenge amid theory and practice in urban planning. This is done by addressing the stereotypes about the concept and application of “rationality” in urban planning” and the doubts which have led to its denial through 1) clarifying more deeply the definition of the concept of rationality; 2) tracing its chronological and conceptual evolution; and 3) dissecting its influences upon the theories and approaches urban planning. The first two are exploratory- descriptive purposes and the third one is descriptive- analytical purpose of this article.
 
Methodology
To achieve the mentioned purposes of this article, the theoretical, experimental, and technical frameworks which are related to the concept of “rationality” has been examined. This article is based on a descriptive-explanatory research and the related text data has been analyzed by the “chronological analysis” method within “qualitative approach” to address the questions of “why”, “how”, “where” and “when”. Furthermore, in this article “thematic analysis method” is being used to trace the themes or repeating pattern in the data sets to describe the research question. By recognition of important and critical events in chronological continuum of the related concepts of the research, this article does not focus on dialectical relationship between knowledge. The methods used to collect and analysis the data within suggested process in the article are included: a) data collection and processing: the data used in this article are secondary data and the method of collecting this data is document review which consist of related data in valid and reliable books and articles; b) data analysis: there is a dual path to analysis the data in this article. In exploratory- descriptive path, it has been traced the theories, concepts and global experiments related to the concept of rationality in urban spatial strategic planning. The output of this path is recognition of the criteria of rationality and irrationality. In descriptive- analytical path, in order to address the third question of the research, this article tries to propose a framework to connect the urban planning approach to different types of rationality to upgrade the actions and interactions of planning.
 
Results and Discussion
The chronological evolution of rationality in planning and its effect on planning approach can be discussed within five periods: in the first period, rationality as a pure reason was seen in comprehensive planning. The focus of planning in this period was on “the best action” to achieve the goals set by the employers. It was assumed the needed resources for planning are unlimited and accessible and planners were a value – free technocrat. In the second period, rationality was still introduced as pure reason and the rational comprehensive planning focused on choosing “efficient action” to face the “planning problems”. The main assumption in this period was the existence of unlimited time and resources for problem finding. In the third period, the limitations of time and data resources in planning were been recognized by a planner. Two dominant approaches were identifiable in this period: a) the approaches based on “substantive rationality”: in these approaches, planner as savior tried to do “justly action” to address “plural values” in society. Therefore, while these approaches were concerned about the “ends” and being justly and fair, they were based on substantive rationality; and b) the approaches based on “formal or functional rationality”: the other planning approaches were interested in mutual consensus between the groups with opposite interest - without caring about the quality of the decisions made by these consensus. So, in these approaches the main actors of planning were interest group and not planners. Fourth period was the period of maturity of rationality concept in planning. In this period substantive and formal rationality were dominant concepts and the “communicating rationality” was introduced. The main purpose of the dominant approaches in this period was focusing on efficient, fair and justly and collective action to tolerate the less defeat and face the uncertainties. In the fifth period the communication rationality is the dominant in planning. The approaches based on this concept are concerned about interactions - not actions -. The main purpose of planning in this period is to achieve to not just a “consensus”, but a “consensus based on a mutual understanding”.
 
Conclusion
The output of this article was a conceptual model in order to show the typology of rationality and their evolution; tracing their influence on urban planning approaches; and explaining the necessity of this concept in strategic spatial planning. Finally the deterrent of using rationality in urban strategic spatial planning could be introduced as: first) the absence of a legal prescribed agenda for the institution which are engaged in urban planning process; second) the epistemological, eclecticism, and political gaps in urban planning and the absence of an agreed definition of strategic spatial planning based of rational thinking; and third) negligence in adaptation underlying economic and political traditions, epistemological foundations and theories and approaches use in planning action and practice.

In the recent decades, there have happened many spatial resistances in response to the privatization, Islamization, securitization and increasing control over public urban spaces in Tehran city context. These mostly have been the outcome of agency of marginalized groups in the space production process. Spatial representation of these spatial resistances has been in such a way that could challenge the dominated spatial order in a temporal and unstable way, and the changing in spatial organization of the city has linked into these conflicts. This research seeks knowing the dominated relations upon these spaces and explaining them theoretically through concept of emergent spaces. At the first, in an experiential manner, spatial distribution of emergent spaces was identified and grouped in relation to the form and the dominated relations of these spaces, then three spaces were selected by using selection matrix, field observations and the interview with elites. Data were analyzed by using grounded theory through open, axial and selective coding processes. The results of data analysis showed the spatial resistances is axial category of emergent spaces. The urban agents resist in the urban spaces by the tactics of everyday life and through spatialisation of their needs, they appropriate them against power spatial order and its spatial constructs. The emergent spaces are produced by these spatial resistances which control and capitalistic relations in that are much less than the other spaces.

The present article reviews the indicators related to the paradigm of spiritual development in the production of urban space, and since the perception of spirituality is the basis, structuring conceptual dimensions and the desired semantic boundary of spirituality and spiritual development in the urban scale will require the use of qualitative methods. Those measurement parameters (codes and criteria) of spiritual-led urban planning are identified, and, in the next step, we will reach the field of measuring and evaluating the impact of these components. Therefore, the research tries to answer the following questions: What are the effective space indicators in producing the spiritual-based space from the perspective of the audience reading? What is the impact of these space indicators? Therefore, the present article is  mixed-methods research and is based on the strategy of grounded theory and structural equation modeling.
Methodology
This research is mixed-methods research based on the strategy of grounded theory and modeling of structural equations, which in the first step by using meta-analysis of a selected body of research, the structure and elements of the model are identified, and then, in order to localize and identify other factors affecting the model, 23 interviews with experts were conducted in the qualitative part of the study, in which two criteria were effective in selecting the initial informants: experience in planning, policy-making, and administration in Samen region; and a minimum record of residence, presence or continuous activity in the context of this region. In this study, a total of 21 individual interviews and 2 group interviews were conducted. In the next step, in order to establish the relationship and sequence among the obtained dimensions and to present the structural model, the structural equation modeling (SEM) method was used, which based on the opinions of the experts and the analyses carried out, is the selected statistical population of Samen region. Accordingly, in accordance with the Cochran's formula and with a 95% confidence level, 384 sample units were required for all four sub-sectors and 12 spaces and the target resident and floating population. On the other hand, according to the SEM experts, in order to achieve sufficient statistical power and accurate estimates, the sample size should be equal to 10 to 15 sample units per predictor variable (Hooman, 2009), so with regard to the 23 predictor variables 345 questionnaire items were required. Finally, considering the size of samples in the first and second methods, the same number of 384 questionnaire items were developed and distributed to informed audiences and activists in this field within an area of ​​300 hectares of all sectors of Samen region (case sample).
Results and discussion
After the initial coding of the text of the interviews and field notes, in the first step, 1014 initial codes were identified. In the second stage, by refining the initial concepts, the number of these conceptswas reduced to 251 codes or first-level concepts, of which by final reviewing of the initial concepts, the elimination of unrelated concepts, and the integration of similar concepts, 53 first-level concepts are obtained. Following the research analysis process, these concepts were categorized into 8 third-level concepts and 23 second-level concepts. The value of t-statistic obtained for all identified components is greater than 1.96, and the effect of identified components on the perception of spirituality is confirmed. According to Figure 4, and considering the value of the path coefficients obtained for the desired components, the sustanability component with the path coefficient value of 0.412 is in the first rank, the management structure component with the path coefficient of 0.200 in the second rank, the justice component with a final point of 0.181 in the third rank, the component of symbolism with the path coefficient of 0.166 in the fourth rank, the component of space arrangement with the value of the path coefficient of 0.160 in the fifth rank, the role component with the path coefficient of 0.154 in the sixth rank, the security component with the path coefficient of 0.129 in the seventh rank, and the component of modernizing theoretical knowledge/practical action in the eighth rank with the path coefficient of 0.103.
Conclusion
Unlike previous studies, which have focused on the production of basic spirituality, focusing more on the objective components of visual spirituality and more detailed dimensions, this study analyzed all the components of this process. The results of structural equation analysis in Figure 5 show the degree of effectiveness in the production of spirituality-based space is, from higher to lower, related to the components of sustainability, management structure, justice, symbolism, spatial arrangement, role-playing, security, and deterrence of practical/contemporary action taking of theoretical knowledge. The development of basic spirituality is a concept beyond the dominant view in current planning (which measures it to the extent of mere physical interventions on the façade and at the micro-scale of urban design). This concept is a three-level construct of concepts that, along with a process-oriented view (structural spirituality), tries to balance the flow of space production through the presentation of strategies and reflections such as reform in space management structure and modernization of theoretical knowledge as a reforming catalyst of the current cycle. The result of this research relies more on replacing the point- and product-oriented view towards a process- and action-based approach in a spiritual-based development, which can be used in development studies. In fact, the reform of the space production cycle and contemporary urban planning depends on understanding the mental social processes in interaction with the objective components, and if the planning situation changes from type A to C, we will see a balanced space production cycle and its positive consequences.