Neighborhood Care and Neighborhood Bonds: An Unequal Relationship

Abstract

<jats:p> Research in environmental psychology has found a positive relationship between place bonds and behaviors related to care and maintenance of place. Although this relationship has been analyzed in natural environments, it has been less frequently studied in urban environments and has yielded contradictory results. The aim of this study is to analyze behavior related to care and conservation of neighborhood and its possible relationship to place bonds, as well as to other variables that we think may be important in explaining this behavior. The participants were 407 residents from eight different neighborhoods with different sociodemographic characteristics in one Spanish city. The results indicate that the relationship between attachment and behavior is significant only in residents with higher socioeconomic levels. These findings may help to explain the contradictory results found in the literature. Other variables which are significant in explaining neighborhood care are social norms, residential satisfaction, and support for protection policies. Place identity was not found to be significantly correlated with neighborhood care. </jats:p>

Place attachment: antecedents and consequences (Antecedentes y consecuencias del apego al lugar)

“…Furthermore, in the best conserved villages in the state of Iowa in the USA, a high degree of community attachment has also been observed (Rice & Miller, 1999). Hidalgo et al (2020) confirm that neighbourhood attachment is positively correlated, albeit only moderately, with taking care of the neighbourhood and that individual characteristics and not neighbourhood characteristics explain this relationship. In particular, they have shown that the relationship between attachment and taking care of the neighbourhood is moderated by the socio-economic level of residents.…”

“…While community participation, participation in conservation and awareness campaigns or the management of neighbourhood problems are ways of taking care of where we live, there are other direct ways of protecting or caring for urban public spaces that aim to contribute to optimal physical conservation. In particular, as Hidalgo et al (2020) point out, these are actions that are carried out directly, intentionally and in a localized way in the neighbourhood with the explicit intention of conserving and maintaining the physical space of the neighbourhood. Such behaviours include respecting green spaces and urban furniture, disposing of rubbish in bins and cleaning up dogs’ mess.…”

“…Si bien la participación comunitaria, la participación en campañas de conservación y sensibilización, o la gestión de los problemas del barrio, son formas de cuidar el lugar donde vivimos, existen otras formas directas de proteger o cuidar el espacio público urbano que tienen como objetivo contribuir a su óptima conservación física. En concreto, como señalan Hidalgo et al (2020), se trata de acciones que se realizan de manera directa, intencional y de forma localizada en el propio barrio que se llevan a cabo con la intención explícita de conservar y mantener el espacio físico del barrio. Tales comportamientos incluyen respetar los espacios verdes y el mobiliario urbano, colocar la basura en contenedores y/o papeleras, y limpiar los despojos de los perros.…”

“…También en los pueblos más cuidados en el estado de Iowa en USA, se ha observado un alto grado de apego a la comunidad (Rice & Miller, 1999). Hidalgo et al (2020) confirman que el apego al vecindario está positivamente correlacionado, aunque sólo moderadamente, con el cuidado del vecindario y que son características individuales y no las del vecindario las que explican esta relación. En concreto, han puesto de manifiesto que la relación entre el apego y el cuidado del vecindario está moderada por el nivel socioeconómico de los residentes.…”

Does Urban Livability Lead to Place Attachment and Behavioural Intentions? Case Study: Isfahan City

“…Hidalgo et al (2021) discovered a positive and significant relationship between neighbourhood attachment and neighbourhood care, although the strength of this relationship was not particularly strong. Another study (Hosany et al, 2020), surveying 410 prospective Spanish tourists investigated the predictors of visit intention, hypothesizing that ad-evoked positive affect, place attachment, and motivation would play a role.…”