ABSTRACT
Using the concept of affordances, developed within the Gibsonian school of ecological psychology, this chapter describes and analyses the functional aspects of children's environment in Cherbourg. The places with comparable socio-physical properties, conditions and similar affordances, have been grouped into place types. These include residential, activity and sports, institutional, semi-natural and natural, and streetscapes. The socio-physical properties and conditions of these place types in Cherbourg are described in relation to the functional needs and requirements of local children. This is an attempt to understand how the environment at Cherbourg is supporting children's activity, social, and emotion management needs. Following an overview of the affordance approach, presented at the beginning of this chapter, consideration is given to the socio-ecology of the place. This refers to the socio-cultural constellations of a place that might either promote or restrict children's use of affordances.
