ABSTRACT
The difference between place, space, and the environment is a recurring question with no definitive answer. The relationship between these concepts and the individual is real and differs based on the physical age of a place. Chapter 1 explores these ideas, searches for a multidisciplinary foundation for place attachment, and reveals the many possibilities of research methodologies. This chapter further explores the psychology of senescent environments, which is the unique psychological qualities that places hold based on natural changes caused by physical age and decay.
There are three primary ways to describe the emotional relationship that people have with environments: spirit of place, sense of place, and place attachment. Spirit of place is an ancient concept that assumes that spirits (or ephemeral beings/ghosts) literally inhibit a place; sense of place is an often vague, qualitative assessment of the general affect of place; and sense of place often assumes quantitative measure and discrete dimensions of meaning. Examples of sense of place include general attachment, place dependence, rootedness, and place identity. The spirit of place and sense of place are associated with a broad array of disciplines in the humanities and design. Place attachment has unique associations with the field of environmental psychology which has, in turn, been informed by humanistic geography.
Researchers employ techniques from psychology to understand place attachment, such as visual preference studies, quasi-experimental and experimental designs, survey instruments, behavioral mapping, environmental attitude measurements, phenomenologies, and neuroscience. Researchers are only beginning to understand the unique psychological qualities of senescent environments, in which there is a relationship between patina and decay, fantasies/imaginary places, and emotional affect. Understanding this relationship, however, has profound implications for practice and overall quality of life.
