As we interact and learn about places, we bestow meaning on such places, forming the mental concept of a sense of place. Mobile devices and location-based services (LBS), a.k.a. locative media, may alter our everyday relationships of place. This paper reports on an exploratory survey study conducted on the elements that comprise sense of place and the role of (LBS). It was found that sense of place arises from diverse information sources, is multimodal and individualistic. Findings also suggest LBS can improve sense of place by enhancing people’s familiarity, personal engagement, and social connection to place. Respondents also identified barriers to their use of LBS.
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Putting Locative Technology in its Sense of Place
1. Putting Locative Technology
In Its Sense of Place
Glen Farrelly
PhD Student
Faculty of Information
University of Toronto
June
June 29, 2013
2.
3.
4. Overview
1. Research Problem
2. Background
3. Sense of Place Diagram
4. Research Questions
5. Importance of Research
6. Methodology
7. Results
8. Conclusion
5. Research Problem
• Mobile locative technology increasing in use
• Its impact upon our relationship to places
not been fully understood
• Some speculate it contributes to alienation
and placelessness
7. Background
Sense of Place
• An individual’s meanings of a place
Hybrid Space:
• Co-evolution of people, technology, and place
8. Locative Media Definition
Five core components necessary:
1. Geo-positioning technology
2. Internet (or data network) connectivity
3. Mobile communications and computing
4. Geocoded content
5. Graphical interface and interaction design
10. Research Questions
1. What is the nature of relationships people
have to places?
2. How do people use information in forming
a sense of place?
3. How do people use mobile devices in
relation to place?
4. What is the potential of LM to improve
sense of place?
11. Importance of Research
• Locative media facilitates access to elusive
geographically relevant information
• This can increase familiarity and connection to
places thereby improving sense of place
• Sense of place is important for identity,
sense of belonging, and custodianship
14. Responses
• Seventy eight people completed the survey
• Cross section of ages, education levels,
and residence
• Mobiles devices used (in order): smartphone,
GPS nav, and tablet
15
17. Meaningful Place Qualities
Characteristic
Percentage of
Respondents
Past personal experience 79.5%
Physical qualities 76.9%
Social dimension 75.6%
History 65.4%
Familial connection 57.7%
Cultural significance 57.7%
Usefulness 53.8%
Spiritual connection 34.6%
18. Information & Sense of Place
• People draw upon different
modalities
• Most used modalities:
word of mouth, print, TV &
film, Internet
• Mobile applications used
for short visits more than
long visits
* Our world is mediated alreadyPhoto by O. Bendorf
19. Locative Media & Place
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Find nearby
businesses
Find nearby
events
Find nearby
sites
View
pictures or
videos of
location
Read
current info
of location
Read history
of location
Read local
news
Read
reviews of
nearby
businesses
%ofrespondents
20. Locative Media Improves
Sense of Place
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Improves knowledge of
place
Aids social connection Improves appreciation
of place
Fosters sense of
belonging to place
%ofrespondents
22. Key Findings
Re. Sense of Place
• Multifaceted - experiential, social,
affective
• Arises from different modalities
and info sources
Re. Locative Media
• Educates on aspects of place
• Helps connects us to our places Photo By Sacred Land Film Project
23. Design Heuristics
• Allow personal experience to be recorded
privately and publicly
• Offer personalization features
• Consider affect
• Draw upon various multimedia formats
• Offer different types of information
• Ensure content available across many locations
Here’s another snapshot of Toronto. This time as seen through the app HistoryPin. A historic image of Torontonians celebrating Victory in Europe (V.E.)day circa 1945 is overlaid on top a mobile device’s view of Bay street now. This jubilant scene brings history to life to an otherwise generic streetscape. But more relevant to my research, it can shape our current perception of that space..
Respondents were instructed to check any of the above eight characteristics of place that “makes a place meaningful to you”. Three out of the eight characteristics were reported by more than 75% of respondents: personal experiences that occurred in a given place (79.5%), aesthetic physical qualities of the place (76.9%), and social dimensions of the place (75.6%). Familial and cultural aspects were 57%. Overall, these response demonstrate that many aspects of a place go into forming a sense of placeand many of these would not be perceptible to other people.
For locative mediato meet the place-related needs of users, this research identified the following recommendations: