The role of place attachment in proactive and reactive adaptation to flood risk
This! research! examines! the! role!of! relationship! with! place! in! reactive!and! proactive! adaptation! to! flood! risk! in! England.! There! is! currently! little! research! into! how! floods! affect! relationship! with! place! and! how! this! relationship! may! determine! adaptive! behaviour.! As! the! social! limits! to! adaptation! are! increasingly! recognised,! theories! about! relationship! with! place!offer!a!new!perspective!as!to!how!flood!risk!is!interpreted!and!acted! on.! This! research! examines! how! place! attachment! and! place! meaning! interacts!with!flood!risk!at!the!household!and!community!scale,!and!the!role! of!place!attachment!in!involvement!in!adaptation!planning!decisions.! ! Fieldwork!took!place!in!two!locations,!Cumbria,!where!adaptation!measures! were!in!response!to!flooding!that!occurred!in!2009!and!Barnes,!an!area!that! is! at! risk! of! flooding! and! is! part! of! the! Thames! Estuary! 2100! plan! that! addresses!flood!risk!in!the!coming!century.!Place!attachment,!place!meaning,! social! capital! and! trust! in! institutions! were! examined! using! faceQtoQface! surveys!(n=380).!In!order!to!gain!a!deeper!understanding!of!the!relationship! between! place! and! flood! experience! inQdepth! interviews!were! carried! out! with!fourteen!older!adults!in!Cumbria.!! ! The! study! finds! that! place! attachment! predicts! choices! and! behaviours! in! proQactive!adaptation!to!flood!risk.!When!adaptation!is!reactive!the!strength! of! the! relationship! between! adaptation! behaviour! and! place! attachment! weakens.! Following! a! flood,! place! related! meanings! change,! this! research! finds! that! social!aspects!of!place!become!more! important! to! the! individual! and! shape! how! place! is! experienced! and! can! act! to! increase! adaptive! capacity.! ! These! findings! demonstrate! the! dynamic! nature! of! relationship! with! place! and! suggest! that! place! attachment! plays! a! different! role! in! involvement!in!adaptation!decisions!depending!on!whether!behaviour!is!in! anticipation!of,!or!in!reaction!to,!environmental!risk.!!
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations