Blog 5: The influence of place

The influence of place on processes

Places are combinations of natural and built environments, such as landforms, vegetation, buildings and roads, and people with their histories, cultures, societies and economies, and each place is unique in its combination of these characteristics. Because places are the geographical context in which physical, social and economic processes operate, their unique characteristics influence the outcomes of these processes in different places. For example, freer trade between countries will disadvantage some places but

advantage others, depending on the characteristics of their individual economies. Some may lose employment because of competition from imported products that they previously made, while others may gain from new export opportunities for their industries. Similarly, the impact of a tsunami on a coastal region varies from place to place according to the environmental characteristics of each place. Coasts where the topography channels the tsunami wave into a smaller space will increase its impact, whereas the presence of coastal mangrove forests will reduce the height and speed of the waves.

The influence of place on people

Places are also the geographical context in which we live, and their unique characteristics influence our lives in many ways.

Environment

One way is through the quality of the natural and built environment of a place, such as:

• The proportion of vegetation and green space.
• Noise levels (from traffic and factories).
• Air pollution/air quality, which affects human health.
• Air temperatures, as excessive heat is a significant cause of human mortality and morbidity.
• The quality of footpaths.
• The visual attractiveness of the place.

Accessibility

A second way is the accessibility of a place to employment, services and facilities. These include:

• Employment, in particular the number of jobs available within a short commuting distance.
• Supermarkets and other food shops.
• Schools and other educational facilities.
• Medical services.
• Sporting and community facilities.

Place and health

A third influence of place is on people’s health. Health geographers explain health differences between places in two ways. One is a compositional approach that attributes poor health to the life styles (such as levels of smoking, alcohol consumption, diet and physical activity) and socioeconomic characteristics (such as income, education and occupation) of the people who live in a place. This argues that poor people produce poor health. A second approach is contextual, and attributes poor health to the social, economic, and physical characteristics of a place. It argues that poor places produce poor health. The characteristics of places that can affect health include:

• The types of employment available.
• The availability of affordable fresh food.
• Opportunities to exercise.
• The provision of health and other services.

• Land, water, and air pollution.
• Access to green spaces.
• The strength of social networks within the community.
• Social inequality.

The effects of green space is of particular interest to geographers. A review of research into the relationship between the environment and people’s mental and physical health and wellbeing, covering seven countries, concluded that the more green space in an area, the lower the mortality of the people in that area. The reasons suggested for this relationship include:

• Trees and other vegetation reduce air pollution, noise and heat.
• Green space reduces stress and improves relaxation.
• Green space encourages physical activity.
• Physical activity improves social connectedness, which improves mental health.
• Exposure to a variety of microorganisms in green environments improves immune responses in the human body.

Other studies, including some in developing countries, have found that exposure to green and blue space is associated with lower levels of depressive illness.

Place and education

Place may affect people’s educational opportunities and attainment, although this is a controversial and complex area of research. For example, in cities where different socioeconomic groups tend to be spatially segregated into separate areas, disadvantaged neighbourhoods are likely to have lower educational outcomes than the more advantaged. For example, an Australian study that mapped primary school scores on a standard test of literacy and numeracy found that, in the major cities, few schools in advantaged suburbs ranked below average, while in disadvantaged suburbs few schools ranked above average, indicating that the socioeconomic composition of the school had an influence on educational outcomes additional to that of the socioeconomic background of individual students. Quantitative measures of the influence of these factors from a number of countries suggest that this ranges from small to moderate, but qualitative studies point to a significant effect on a minority of children.

Why place matters

The influence of place on people’s lives is summarised by Susan Smith, a British geographer, who writes:

Residential space is a gateway to services, educational, and employment opportunities, health, and social services. Where people live is therefore a reflection of who they are, but it is also an influence on who they can become. It has therefore been argued that tackling the inequalities embedded in residential segregation is a key priority for public policy and an urgent focus for social concern. (Smith, 2001, p. 548)

A second overview is by Jeff Malpas, an Australian philosopher who has written extensively about place:

Put simply, what we are depends on what we can do, and what we can do depends on where we are situated. It is not merely, then, that we look to the places in which we live as that by

means of which we explicitly articulate a sense of ourselves, but more than this, the very shape of our lives is determined, implicitly and explicitly, by the possibilities that are given in and through the places [in] which we live and our interaction with those possibilities and places. (Malpas, 2006, p. 2)

Places are fundamental to human existence, because we are always in a place and are consequently always influenced by a place. As a way of thinking geographically, the concept of place means being aware of the influence of places on people and processes. It explains the wonderful variety of the world, counters the supposed universalising influence of processes such as globalisation, and guards against excessive generalisation. As geographers say, ‘place matters’. It also has political significance, as Ron Martin (2001, p. 203) argues that a primary objective [of geographers] must be to demonstrate the crucial ‘difference that place makes’ in the construction, implementation and impact of public policy.