PLACES

Question 1

what can perceptions if place be shaped by?

Answer 1

• personal experiences
• age
• gender
• sexuality
• religion
• role

Question 2

personal experiences

Answer 2

positive experiences may make it likely to have positive perceptions/ emotional attachments to that place
and vice versa

Question 3

age

Answer 3

age can influence perceptions + use of a place
perceptions can change over life cycle
can change how suitable a place is perceived to be
e.g. children use park to play; adults use it to go on walk
e.g. moving residence: young adult/ Uni student live in inner city + rent to be near job opportunities and clubs; older people e.g. with kids may prefer suburbs with gardens/ green space

Question 4

gender

Answer 4

• some spaces traditionally defined as ‘make’ or ‘female’ e.g. domestic stereotypes of women in the home, or male public space like football games
• females may be excluded from certain places which are male-dominated, influencing mental maps of safety and decisions about where the go/ use e.g. avoid dark alleyways
• certain places can therefore be perceived as ‘unsafe’
• GEOGRAPHIES OF FEAR
• architects/ planners may be influenced by this and use it when planning layouts of city centres to encourage positive perceptions (e.g. well-lit and wide streets)

Question 5

sexuality

Answer 5

• can effect how people use places
• some places acquire meaning because they are where LGBTQ+ people gather
• some cities have specific zones of restaurants and clubs which are ‘gay friendly’ e.g. GAY VILLIAGE in MANCHESTER
• people cluster as feel safe in these areas (perceived as safe)
• economic aspect: the ‘pink pound/ dollar’: can be important in rebranding places or changing brand identity
• e.g. MANCHESTER and BRIGHTON benefit from LGBTQ+ tourism as people seek places where they have a sense of community and are not restricted by fears

Question 6

religion

Answer 6

• places have been given spiritual meaning for millennia
• some natural landscape features have meaning to certain groups e.g. for ABORIGINAL CULTURE in Australia
• locations have been given religious meanings e.g. MEGALITHS like STONE HENGE
• religions such as JUDAISM and CHRISTIANITY have given buildings like synagogues and churches religious meaning
• also locations like JERUSALEM: e.g. contains stone tablets given to Moses or where Jesus was crucified (sacred site)

Question 7

role

Answer 7

people have different roles in diff location/ places
- e.g. may be daughter/ sister when at home, and then a perfect when at school, or a band member when with your friends
- role when in a location may impact perceptions and behaviour e.g. may act different when shopping with friends than when at home with parents
- therefore when role changes, perceptions change
- can lose and gain roles, changing perceptions: can impact GEOGRAPHIES OF FEAR