What about place? Considering the role of physical environment on youth imagining of future possible selves

Abstract

Identity research indicates that development of well elaborated cognitions about oneself in the future, or one's possible selves, is consequential for youths' developmental trajectories, influencing a range of social, health, and educational outcomes. Although the theory of possible selves considers the role of social contexts in identity development, the potential influence of the physical environment is understudied. At the same time, a growing body of work spanning multiple disciplines points to the salience of place, or the meaningful physical environments of people's everyday lives, as an active contributor to self-identity. Bridging these two lines of inquiry, I provide evidence to show how place-based experiences, such as belonging, aversion, and entrapment, may be internalized and encoded into possible selves, thus producing emplaced future self-concept. I suggest that for young people, visioning self in the future is inextricably bound with place; place is an active contributor both in the present development of future self-concept and in enabling young people to envision different future possible places. Implications for practice and future research include place-making interventions and conceptualizing place beyond “neighborhood effects.”

The future of the family as envisioned by young adults in Ireland

“…In the field of youth studies, much research has been done recently on young people's views on various aspects of the future (e.g. Carabelli and Lyon 2016;Cook 2015;Prince 2014;Skrbis et al 2014;Threadgold 2012), but there is very little research on future families envisioned by them. This article seeks to contribute to understanding the role of young people and culture in the social change of families: more specifically, the cultural meanings that young adults attach to future families.…”

Collective Efficacy as a Key Context in Neighborhood Support for Urban Youth

“…A significant and growing body of research spanning multiple disciplines points to the salience of place, or the meaningful environments of everyday life, in shaping people's perception of themselves, their neighborhood and, importantly, others who reside in the neighborhood with them (Prince, ). Perceptions of one's neighborhood as a “good” and “healthy” place are bound up with how groups within the neighborhood are viewed.…”

Assessing Future Expectations of Low-Income Minority Young Men: Survival-Threats and Positive Expectations

“…On the other hand, personality research conceptualizes future orientation as “time perspective,” a stable personality characteristic assessed by a typology of an individual’s intrinsic orientation towards time (Zimbardo & Boyd, 1999). In this sense, time perspective differs from a possible selves approach to future orientation in that personality traits are considered intrinsic to the individual, whereas possible selves are developed through social cognitive processes that emerge through on-going interactions between the individual and their social and physical environments (Prince, 2013). …”