Aims : The purpose of the research is to explain the direct relationship between neighborhood design elements and the sense of community and their indirect relationship through neighboring in the form of a conceptual model and to present a prioritization of design elements that affect the sense of community.

Methods : This research is descriptive-analytical and quantitative and qualitative strategies have been used to achieve the research objective. For this purpose, first, the direct and indirect effects of design elements on the sense of community have been examined using documentary methods, by searching and analyzing sources. Then, in order to rank the influential indicators of neighborhood design elements on the sense of community of urban neighborhood residents, an expert questionnaire and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) in Expert Choice 11 software have been used, and finally, the conceptual model of the research has been presented.

Findings : The results of the AHP indicated that among the indicators of neighborhood design elements, access to cultural-religious services (0.195) has the greatest impact on the sense of community, and access to commercial services, mixed use, and access to (and number of)public open spaces are in the next most important ranks, respectively. According to the conceptual model of the research, neighborhood design elements, as one of the influential factors at the meso scale, interact with other factors at the three micro, meso, and macro scales, both directly and indirectly through neighboring , affect the sense of community.