The Place of Place in Social Work: Rethinking the Person-in-Environment Model in Social Work Education and Practice

Doing place : a framework for interpreting young adults' commitments to Appalachian Kentucky.

“…In this regard, making meaning might be considered a critical tasks of social work, in that it holds the potential to expand human relations, compassion, and the creative exchange of ideas toward sustainable justice and equity (Hawkins, 2014, p. 90). For example, understanding diversity within and among places may facilitate deeper knowledge of disparities tied to geographic location and local culture, such as in health outcomes (Akesson et al, 2017;Bice-Wigington & Morgan, 2018). But while place has been demonstrated here to be an important mediator in meaning making, it is an often neglected aspect of diversity and intersectionality, and has rarely been considered in teaching social work's seminal person-in-environment perspective (Akesson et al, 2017;Bice-Wigington & Morgan, 2018;Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2015).…”

“…Where social science research attends to place, descriptions are often relegated simply to locations where data was collected; only rarely emerging as part of the analysis and interpretation (Basso, 1996;Massey, 1994;Tuck & McKenzie, 2015). This is true for social work as well, where despite the field's hallmark person-in-environment perspective and ecological models, conceptual and theoretical orientations to place have received little attention in research and practice (Aguiniga & Davis, 2014;Akesson, Burns, & Hordyk, 2017). In attending to this gap, Akesson and colleagues (2017) suggest three components of place that are particularly relevant to social work including: place attachment, place identity, and territoriality.…”

“…Place attachment refers to the bond that develops between people and place . This bond arises as a result of a complex exchange of emotions and experiences (Akesson et al, 2017;Brown & Raymond, 2007;Giuliani, 2003;Seamon, 2014;Smith, 2005). These interactions inform our sense of places present, memory of places past, and imagination of places future (Davidson, Bondi, & Smith, 2005;Jones, 2005).…”

“…This domain refers to the idea that our bonds with place evolve alongside the development of the self (Bell, 2013;Hauge, 2007;Proschansky, Fabian & Kaminoff, 1983;Twigger-Ross, Bonaiuto, & Breakwell, 2003). Through the ongoing interaction between humans and their environments, sense of place and sense of self become intertwined in narrative, memories, and emotions (Akesson et al, 2017;Cross, 2015;Prochansky, 1983;Stedman, 2002). This process is ongoing, and identities often change due to life course developments or to changes to place (Denzin, 1992;McHugh & Mings, 1996;Rubinstein & Parmelee, 1992).…”

“…First, doing place illustrates the importance of the three sensitizing concepts reviewed in Chapter 2 and supports their continued use in research that explore migration decisions and commitments to community engagement (e.g., Adams, 2016;Bell, 2013;Davidson et al, 2005;Marshall et al, 2012;Smith et al, 2009). Though participants did not use the language of these concepts to describe their experience, the analytic categories developed articulate that each of these inform young adults' Place identity is also represented here, as individuals were shaped by the identity of Appalachian Kentucky (Akesson et al, 2017;Cross, 2015).…”