Village Facilities and Social Place Attachment in the Rural Netherlands

Bibliographic Data

ID2291245
AuthorsJoost Gieling (Faculty of Spatial Sciences, Department of Cultural Geography University of Groningen), Tialda Haartsen (0000-0003-3858-3419, Faculty of Spatial Sciences, Department of Cultural Geography University of Groningen), Lotte Vermeij (Netherlands Institute for Social Research)
Year2019
Volume84
Issue1
Pages66-92
Publication date2019-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueRural Sociology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0036-0112 • E-ISSN: 1549-0831
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/ruso.12213
OpenAlexW2762449686
LanguageEN
Citations received14
References cited69

Economies of scale and increased mobility have led to the closure of many village facilities. Most residents do not rely on locally available facilities anymore for their primary function. However, facilities are also meeting places. A decline in facilities may therefore negatively influence residents' social place attachment. This article examines which facilities impact residents' social place attachment. It also explores whether different facilities impact the social place attachment of different groups of residents differently. In our analyses, we make a distinction between rural areas near and away from urban areas. Based on structural equation modeling, we conclude that in rural areas, both near and away from cities, cafés and supermarkets may well matter for residents' social attachment. In contrast to common expectations, community centers, primary schools, and sports facilities were not shown to enhance social place attachment. Considering the increasing self-reliance of local communities, these findings raise doubts about the use of public services to revitalize local communities

Business · Closure (psychology · Economic growth · Economics · Function (biology · Geography · Interpersonal ties · Place attachment · Political science · Rural area · Scale (ratio · Social science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Place Attachment and Urban Studies · Psychology · Rural development and sustainability · Social Psychology

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