ABSTRACT
Place attachment is composed of functional and psychological bonds that people establish with the near spatial context, from home to the local neighborhood. This spatial context is formed by a physical, architectural dimension, and by social and emotional links. The types of place attachment vary with the characteristics of individuals, households, and spatial contexts. Place attachment develops over time and is related to concepts of home stability and security. On the other hand, after the global financial crisis, job precariousness has spread out and has led to a growing uncertainty in households’ lives, as well as housing insecurity—particularly in the most fragile households, which are dependent on the difficulties of housing markets that raise fears of losing one’s home.
As progressive dismantling of public welfare continues, place attachment is more necessary than ever before because fragile households can be helped by family and social networks. Thus, place attachment is not only a consequence of housing stability, but increasingly a prerequisite to social sustainability. This chapter address the paradox of the increasing need for place attachment while public welfare declines, resulting in housing insecurity. The chapter will analyze also how this paradox introduces a new dimension of social and spatial inequality between people, leading to place attachment developing as a commodity as opposed to a social resource. An empirical exploration will be made using the European Quality of Life Survey, which considers the sociocultural heterogeneity of Europe.
