Reconciling Windfarms with Rural Place Identity: Exploring Residents’ Attitudes to Existing Sites

Rural place is a significant influencer of the ageing and states of well-being experienced by older women. This paper extends existing knowledge on gendered rural place by examining its influence on mid-life (45–65 years) women in rural Sweden and rural Ireland. This paper also examines rural place identity, self-identity and the enhancement of the self, and the multiple pathways to place attachment at mid-life. Qualitative data were gathered in 2019 from ten women living in Sweden’s rural Värmland region, and in 2012–2013 from 25 women living in Ireland’s rural Connemara region. Adopting a social constructionist approach within a lifecourse framework, methodology was informed by constructivist grounded theory, using one-to-one semi-structured interviews. These distinct studies show both similarity and difference in rural place identity and self-identity among mid-life women, and highlight nuances around place attachment, the home, social relationships, and the natural environment. The data show a compelling need for a greater consideration of the critical and diverse role rural place plays in shaping women’s experiences of ageing and well-being both at mid-life and in older age.

Download Full-text

Roles of Tourism Involvement and Place Attachment in Determining Residents’ Attitudes Toward Industrial Heritage Tourism in a Resource-Exhausted City in China

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11195151 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (19) ◽

pp. 5151 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Yuan ◽

Song ◽

Chen ◽

Shang

Keyword(s):

Social Exchange ◽

Place Attachment ◽

Social Exchange Theory ◽

Economic Transition ◽

Heritage Tourism ◽

Place Identity ◽

Generation Process ◽

Industrial Heritage ◽

Emotional Bonds ◽

Residents Attitudes

An in-depth discussion of place attachment in the relationship between residents’ perceived tourism impacts and their support for tourism is still lacking. The predictor of tourism involvement in this relationship has also been underestimated and little attention has been paid to industrial heritage tourism in relation to residents’ attitudes toward tourism development. To fill this gap, we extend upon the existing studies of residents’ attitudes toward tourism with place attachment (both place identity and place dependence) and tourism involvement based on social exchange theory, attitude theory, and the theory of planned behavior. A self-administered survey was completed by 336 residents of Huangshi, a city undergoing a transition to industrial heritage tourism in China. The findings show that residents’ support for tourism is the result of a complete behavior generation process. This has gradually formed through tourism involvement, cognition, affection, and behavior intention, emphasizing the importance of participation and affective attitude in determining residents’ attitudes toward tourism. To maintain the sustainable development of industrial heritage tourism in the economic transition from an old industrial region to new sectors, local authorities should attach more importance to strengthening residents’ native emotional bonds and concentrate on how to encourage local residents to participate in tourism activities.

Download Full-text