Reviewing Research In Place Attachment Sociology Essay Example

live (Weidemann & Anderson, 1985, p.156). Therefore, further delimitation is necessary.In order to achieve this, we rely on what we consider to be the main feature of the concept of fond regard: the desire to maintain a close relationship with the object of fond regard (Ainsworth & Bell, 1970; Bowlby, 1969, 1980). This characteristic, although implicit in many definitions and operationalizations of the concept, has rarely been explicitly emphasized. If we incorporate this specific property into the previous definition of place fond regard, it could take the following form: a positive emotional bond between an individual and a specific place, the main feature of which is the individual's inclination to maintain closeness to such a place.

The measurement of place fond regard:
Although some have treated the people-place relationship as one-dimensional, conceptual and empirical studies have shown its multidimensionality (e.g., Bricker & Kerstetter, 2000; Williams et al., 1992). Widely accepted in the literature is Schreyer et al.'s (1981) as well as Williams and Roggenbuck's (1989) planar conceptualization of place fond regard. Place dependence. Place dependence reflects the significance of a place in providing features and conditions that support specific goals or desired activities of tourists.The functional attachment is expressed through the physical features of a country, which may increase if the place allows for frequent testing. Place identity is the connection between oneself and a specific setting, consisting of memories, interpretations, thoughts, and related emotions about physical and types of scenes. This study identified four major conceptualizations of place identity that are worth differentiating based on theoretical grounds (see figure 1). One axis in the literature is the idea of "extended self" - the concept that places

are experienced cognitively as part of oneself. According to self-expansion theory, individuals have an inherent motivation for self-expansion and a desire to integrate others (including places) into their self-concept. The closer the entity (place) is included in the self, the stronger the bond between them becomes. Over time, attachment develops and there is a cognitive reorganization where the self expands to include the entity. People develop a positive feeling of unity with the entity and tend to view its resources as their own.The concept of "ecological ego" (Bragg, 1996) and "environmental identity" can be seen as a second axis, where individuals develop a subjective sense of fitting into or being part of their physical environment. This idea is also related to the concept of "rootedness" in the context of residential settings (McAndrew, 1998), which adds to the notion of place identity. A third axis is the idea of congruence between oneself and the place, where the place aligns with one's values and personality (e.g., Sirgy & Su, 2000). This idea of place-self congruence has been studied in relation to travel destination choices (Berli et al., 2007). I define place-self congruence as the feeling that the image one has of a place is similar to or consistent with one's own personal characteristics.

Place-self congruence

Meme

Place

Place

High congruence

Maine

Maine

PLACEPLACE

Figure 1: Three theoretical topologies of place identity

Other conceptualizations of the people-place relationship exist. Emotions are evoked when attachment is strong because emotions are intrinsic to the human-place bond. Riley (1992) emphasized emotional attachment as the "emotional relationship between people and the landscape that goes beyond knowledge, preference or opinion" (p.13). Although these concepts have typical features, there is considerable convergence among them.

I believe all three factors constitute the concept of place attachment.

Factors predicting place attachment

The most comprehensive classification of factors predicting place attachment is into three rough categories: socio-demographic, social, and physical-environmental. Here, I present a brief summary, supplemented with some additional findings.

Socio-demographic predictors. Variables studied under this label include residence length, age, social status and education, home ownership, community size, having children, mobility and its range.Regarding the variables, the length of residence has consistently been found to be the strongest predictor of attachment to residential areas, as supported by multiple studies (Bonaiuto et al., 1999; Brown et al., 2003, 2004; Fleury-Bahi et al., 2008). Mobility, closely related to residence length, can have various forms and impact attachment to places differently (Gustafson, 2002). This can include frequent changes of permanent residence or traveling for business or tourism purposes, both domestically and internationally (Gustafson, 2009b; van der Klis & Karsten, 2009). These different forms of mobility can result in varying levels of attachment to permanent residences, potentially decreasing or increasing attachment (Gustafson, 2009). Another commonly studied predictor of place attachment is community ties, which are measures of local social capital (unknown source).The text explores the relationship between strength of community ties and place attachment, as well as the potential causal direction of this relationship. Researchers (Bonaiuto et al., 2006; Brown et al., 2004) have consistently found that strength and largeness of vicinity ties and engagement in informal societal activities positively predict place attachment. Scopelliti and Tiberio (2010) discovered that homesickness among Rome students was predicted by the perceived strength of community ties within their hometown. It is unclear whether close social ties make a place more meaningful,

leading to emotional bonds, or if place attachment increases willingness to engage with neighbors, or both. Additionally, it is possible that emotional bonds with a place and strong community ties are interconnected aspects of individuals with less instrumental attitudes towards their immediate surroundings. Until researchers examine predictors and mechanisms of place attachment, these questions will remain unanswered. Although social factors such as the strength of local ties are the most consistent predictors of place attachment, physical variables can also contribute and sometimes explain a higher percentage of variation in place attachment than social factors do.The presence of quiet areas, aesthetically pleasant buildings, green areas, and lack of perceived incivilities have been identified as environmental characteristics that impact place attachment (Bonaiuto et al., 1999; Brown et al., 2003). Physical characteristics can indirectly influence place attachment by facilitating social interactions (Sugihara and Evans, 2000). In a study on residents of continuing care retirement communities, physical factors such as proximity to the main activity building, close functional distance to neighbors, and access to a shared outdoor garden were found to be the best predictors of place attachment (Sugihara and Evans, 2000). The relative importance of social and physical predictors may vary depending on additional factors. Fried (1984) found that the significance of physical versus social factors depended on the socioeconomic status of residents, with objective characteristics being better predictors in higher classes and social ties in lower ones. Pretty et al. (2003) observed that the relative role of these factors was age-dependent, with social factors being the best predictors of place attachment in older individuals and the degree to which a place enabled activity and the accomplishment of

important life goals being more important for younger individuals in rural Australia.Lewicka (2010) discovered that physical characteristics, such as the size of buildings, maintenance, personalization, presence of vegetation, and type of housing, were better predictors of attachment to the building and neighborhood compared to attachment to the city territory and city. Social factors, particularly neighborhood ties, were the strongest overall predictor of attachment in four central European cities (Poland and Ukraine).

Regarding the consequences of place attachment, it is generally assumed to be beneficial. Theodori (2001) conducted a study on random samples from four different communities in Pennsylvania and found that community attachment significantly influenced individual well-being. As mentioned in previous sections, the strong connection between local ties and place attachment suggests that attached community members have greater local social capital compared to those who are not attached (Kasarda & Janowitz, 1974; Mesch & Manor, 1998).Leiwicka (2010) conducted a comprehensive study that found individuals who were attached to their place demonstrated a greater sense of coherency, overall satisfaction with their life, stronger societal and neighborhood ties, a deeper interest in their family roots, higher levels of trust in others, and generally displayed less selfishness. This was reflected by higher scores on the "self-transcendence" dimension (benevolence and universalism) of Schwartz's value circumplex. Researchers studying the effects of place attachment have primarily focused on place-related activities. The assumption is often made that individuals who are attached to their place are more likely to engage in activities that benefit their home or, in areas with natural beauty, activities aimed at preserving national resources. However, as research on attitude-behavior consistency suggests, this connection is not absolute, and therefore evidence

linking attachment to social engagement is mixed. On the other hand, there is significant evidence for no or negative association between place attachment and involvement in place-related activities.Lewickia (2005) conducted a study in which they did not find a direct relationship between place attachment and willingness to be involved in various forms of social activity. In fact, on the block level, a negative association was even found. However, they did discover a consistent indirect link between the two measures, with neighborhood ties acting as the mediating variable. Place-related activity can manifest in different ways, such as supporting environment-protecting changes or opposing alterations and preserving the status quo. The latter, known as the NIMBY effect, has been criticized in recent literature for its strongly negative connotations (Devine-Wright, 2009). Several studies have found a positive relationship between emotional bonds with a place and opposition to introduced changes. Vorkinn and Riese (2001) examined attitudes towards the development of a hydroelectric plant among residents of a small rural community in Norway. They found that attachment to the affected area predicted a negative attitude towards the project, while attachment to the municipality predicted acceptance. Similar findings were reported by Bonaiuto et al. (2002), who studied the attitudes of two large groups of local and non-local residents in two Italian regions towards transforming the area into national parks.The undertaking had a significantly stronger impact on the local group, who derived net incomes from the traditional economic system of the country. As expected, this group demonstrated a stronger attachment to their region and a more negative attitude towards the undertaking compared to the non-local group who were unaffected. There was also a

negative relationship between attachment to place/regional identity and support for the national parks. Divine-Wright and Howes (2010) conducted a comprehensive study among residents of two coastal towns in North Wales that were facing the planned construction of two wind turbines. The attitude towards the undertaking varied between the two towns, depending on the significance attached to their place of residence. If the town was mainly associated with scenic beauty, place attachment was correlated with feelings of anger and threat, as well as resistance behavior. The authors conclude that the mediating factor between attachment and action is the significance attributed to places, specifically how much the planned change is perceived as destroying the place's identity. The stronger the sense of threat, the stronger the relationship between attachment and action.

Directions for the hereafter surveies

Residential scenes and immediate community have been the focal point of topographic point attachment research for a long clip. The construct of "home" is frequently used as a metaphor for relationships to different topographic points. However, this literal reading of place does not capture everyone's experience of place. Instead, place is seen as the process of traveling and discovering new locations. New trends in research include exploring people's experiences with natural outdoor recreation places such as National Parks, forests, and wilderness areas, as well as summer houses.McIntyre (2001) found that 1st and 2nd places were significant (Van Patten and Williams, 2008; Stedman, 2006). Gustafson (2001) explored the importance of both residential and nonresidential scenes in people's lives, with about half of participants emphasizing nonresidential locations or broader geographic areas. Manzo (2005) noted that natural scenes offered opportunities for exploration separate from

work or home environments. A process-oriented approach should clarify how individuals form meaningful connections with places. Theoretical progress can be made by incorporating developmental theories, particularly early attachment theories, and by studying the role of self-continuity in lifespan developmental processes. Additionally, concepts from the phenomenological tradition, which describe the creation of a sense of place, could be reinterpreted within frameworks such as theories of motor knowledge or Gibson's theory of affordances, leading to new theoretical and empirical insights.