EXAMINING PROPERTY-RIGHTS AND INVESTMENT IN INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS - THE CASE OF JORDAN

The conventional approach to ''property rights'' and how they are established and assigned to individuals in society assumes a consensual process in which rational individuals compare the benefits and costs of establishing such rights. Drawing on a case study along the periphery of Amman, Jordan, this paper attempts to examine the meaning of ''rights'' in the context of conflicting claims to land. Furthermore, the paper questions the assumed causal relationship between legal rights, security of tenure, and investment in land.