Journal of Environmental Psychology (1994) 14, 79 82 0272-4944/94/010079+04508.00/0 © 1994 Academic Press Ltd

ONMRNTAL PSY BOLOGY REVIEW ESSAY

SPATIAL PSYCHOLOGY OR THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE?: LINKING GEOGRAPHY AND PSYCHOLOGY AT THE

P E O P L E - E N V I R O N M E N T INTERFACE

HUGH MATTHEWS

Division of Geographical Studies, Nene College, Moulton Park, Northampton NN2 7AL, U.K.

People and Environment: Behavioural Approaches in Human Geography. 2nd Editn. By D. J. Walmsley and G. J. Lewis, London: Longman Scientific and Technical, 1993. 290 pp. £14.99. ISBN 0 582 07866 0

D. J. Walmsley is Professor of Geography and Planning at the University of New England, Australia. To date, he has published three major geography texts and 80journal articles and reports.

G. J. Lewis is reader and Head of Geography at the University of Leicester, and has already published three books, over 60journal articles and a number of working papers.

Hugh Matthews is Reader in Geography at Nene College, recently moving from Coventry University where he taught human and social geography for over 19 years. He has written extensively in international journals of geography, education and psychology, producing six books to date: His most recent work is Making Sense of Place: Children's Understanding of Large-scale Environments.

Behavioural geography seeks to unders tand human activity in geographical space by focusing upon how individuals think and act. Its heyday was in the 1960s, when it arose as an antithesis to the influence of positivism and spatial science as explanatory frameworks for human behaviour. For some, it was an emancipating development, freeing explanation from the narrow confines of a law-seeking scientific geography and providing a bridge which led 'from the "peopleless" landscapes of spatial science to the "peopled" landscapes of humanistic geography' (Cloke et al., 1991, p. 67). For others, it was a dis- appointment, shackled from the outset by a highly positivist stance and an over-reliance on statistical techniques which obfuscated human decision-mak- ing (Bunting & Guelke, 1979).

Perhaps part of the reason for this seeming division of opinion is tha t there have always been two types of behavioural geography. In its initial conception, much of the work carried out under its banner was restricted to a fairly narrow interpreta- tion of how human beings think and act. There was a strong reliance on the notions of behaviourism

and other 'packages of psychological thought' (Gold, 1980) and whilst data were collected from indi- viduals, these were usually aggregated to allow statistically significant generalizations to be made about human spatial behaviour, 'almost certainly in the context of normative models of the spatial science school' (Johnston, 1987, p. 169). Largely blighted by this conception of human decision- making, the second and 'later' type of behavioural geography never gained substantive support and has been described as a 'somewhat forgotten per- spective within human geography' (Cloke et al., 1991). Its focus is more concerned with people- environment interactions and like humanism em- phasizes the importance of social diversity, posing not only the question 'how?' but also, 'why?' when considering human response. Walmsley and Lewis' book falls firmly into this camp, and as such offers an up-to-date reminder of the value of behavioural approaches in human geography.

On reading People and the Environment what is immediately apparent is the strong link between human geography and various strands of psychology.

79

80 It . M a t t h e w s

In the first edition of their work, Walmsley and Lewis (1984) drew attention to the mutua l interests shared by both disciplines. Emphasis then was upon how people came to know and unders tand the environment in which they lived and how this information was important to spatial behaviour. Much attention was given to the importance of cognition and imagery, environmental evaluation, the effect of preference upon decision-making and how people develop a sense of a t tachment to place, This work was underpinned by a philosophical con- viction which espoused a transactional-constructivist tradition, bu t which also recognized the importance of humanist ic perspectives. For me, this was a welcome addition to the geographical repertoire. I was encouraged to read a text which at tempted to view environmental knowing from a holistic stance and which considered individuals as 'active' agents. At the time both were unfashionable positions. This was an era of 'structure' ra ther than 'agency' and although there was an awareness that geography and psychology had much to offer each other (Pocock & Hudson, 1978) there was a general reticence of information sharing and collaborative effort. Nearly a decade later, the publication of a second edition, provides a timely opportunity to review what has been achieved in the interim with regard to the above and to consider, too, whether the authors have significantly changed the content and philosophical base of the book.

First, I will examine the link between geography and psychology. My impression is that there is still much to be done before healthy interaction is achieved. Some performance indicators which lead me to this conclusion include: (i) few geographers publish in journals of psychology and vice versa, such that those that do are still noticed; (ii) little at- tempt to bring together teams of psychologists and geographers to teach courses of mutual interest in higher education; (iii) a cavalier use of psychological terminology by geographers, such that concepts like 'perception' and 'cognition' are much used but much abused; (iv) an indifference by many psychologists to the clamour of those geographers who argue that behaviour can only be understood in naturalistic settings away from the artificiality of the labora- tory; (v) a seeming disregard by geographers of excellent and burgeoning research by psychologists on the spatial and mapping capabilities of young children when designing the National Curriculum for geography.

There are signs, none the less, of a growing awareness of cross-discipline links. Recent confer- ences held at Sydney (International Geographical

Union Conference, 1988), Kyoto (International Congress of Applied Psychology, 1990) and Sheffield (Centenary Annual Conference of Geographical Association, 1992) have incorporated joint symposia by psychologists and geographers. Recent books, too, have shown that psychology and geography often share mutual concerns (Spencer et al., 1989; Matthews, 1992; Garling & Golledge, 1993). Per- haps the branches of psychology which have moved closest to human geography are environmental psy- chology and ecological psychology, particularly at the people-environment interface. It is therefore fitting that Walmsley and Lewis should retitle their work to recognize the importance of this interaction and provide a review which draws out strong inter- disciplinary links.

To some extent this new book reflects~a continued discontent with 'structural' explanation. The authors contend that 's tructural approaches fail to explain why people-environment interaction takes the form it does' (p. ix). There is a need for a s tudy of 'indivi- dual decision-making units' and only micro-scale s tudy provides an 'authentic view of human be- haviour that highlights distinctly human character- istics, thereby dispensing with both the notion of the mind as '%lack box" and the idea that individuals are powerless' (p. ix). These are sentiments which are entirely in accord with the eclectic reality of post-modernism today. Whereas the publication of the first edition of the book in the early 1980s coincided with a period of disillusionment with every- thing to do with 'agency', there is now a greater sense of accommodation and, for some, (Seamon, 1987; Golledge, 1988; Kobyashi & MacKenzie, 1989) a growing convergence between the rival tradi- tions of positivism, humanism and structuralism, all of which has revitalized interest in behavioural investigations.

People and the environment is more than a reworking of the first edition. The entire structure of the book has changed and a new set of Par t and Chapter headings are provided, both to take into account the range of behavioural l i terature tha t has been published since the early 1980s and the shifts of emphasis within the domain of geographical inquiry. Gone are the major sections on macro-scale and micro-scale approaches, as well as a section on 'case studies'. Instead the authors present a book whose organization enables a consideration of the interplay between 'patterns and structures on the one hand and processes and behaviour on the other hand' (p. ix), as well as highlighting the balance between choice and constraint and their respective influence on behaviour. In so doing, Walmsley and

Review Essay 81

Lewis abandon an approach which they recognize was initially literature-led and instead focus on what they regard as 'fundamentally important aspects of human existence in advanced Western society' (p. x). To this end, the book reflects a matur- ing relationship and a growing of confidence, be- tween particular strands of psychology and human geography.

The book is divided into three parts, each with an introductory section designed to draw attention to principal debates and issues. Part One, 'People and the environment', provides a contextual setting for behavioural research in geography. It charts the emergence of a behavioural paradigm, considers subsequent criticism and the growth of rival tradi- tions and examines how, during the late 1980s, behavioural study was revitalized and 'came of age'. The authors contend that a major element in this revival was the forging of closer links with environ- mental and cognitive psychology. Initially this link 'was largely focused on conceptual matters but, of late, it has been strengthened by the common use of measurement techniques and experimental designs' (p. 2O).

In Part Two, 'Approaches to the study of people and environment', chapters 2 and 3 examine struc- tural approaches and chapters 4 and 5 outline behavioural approaches to people-environment inter- action. It should be emphasized that the author deliberately take a cavalier interpretation of 'structure', such that discussion ranges across socio-spatial structures, structures of the mind, and structural thought. Equally, when discussing behavioural studies a broad ambit is offered en- compassing how individuals come to know about, differentiate between, develop images of, and attach meanings to places, and how such knowledge has a bearing upon decision-making. In contrast, chapter 6 proposes that to compartmentalize interpretations of people-environment interaction in such ways is flawed, and that 'true' understanding will only emerge through the integration of (1) choice and constraint, (2) process and pattern, (3) the micro- scale and the macro-scale, (4) behaviour and struc- ture' (p. 139). At this juncture, Walmsley and Lewis suggest that the way ahead is not to be disparaging about the rival claims of alternative explanatory frameworks, instead 'more may be gained from attempting to see a plurality of approaches as a basis for complementary perspectives on people- environment interaction' (p. 139).

Part Three, 'Fields of study', develops this multi- perspective stance by focusing on the interplay of choice and constraint in the context of five issues

central to 'human existence' at a time of rapid social, economic, and technological change: jobs and work, housing and migration, shops and shopping, leisure and recreation and belonging and well- being. When exploring these domains no claim is made for the primacy of behavioural approaches over other approaches in human geography, nor is any preference shown for one behavioural approach over another, instead the authors prefer to examine varied explanations for those 'paths taken' and for those 'paths foreclosed'. Such discussion re- emphasizes the authors' conviction that in the post-modern world, where conditions of human existence vary from place to place, there is as yet no single, overarching theory which satisfactorily explains the variability of people environment inter- action and so appreciation depends uponobalancing the rival virtues and claims of competing perspec- tives.

What I find particularly appealing about this pre- sentation is the ability of the authors to disentangle complex concepts and present ideas in a cogent and balanced way. This is vitally important in a book of this kind. Its main audience is likely to be under- graduates, honed on geographical ideas and weighed- down by the rival virtues of competing theoretical orientations, but whose understanding of psycho- logical theories and methodologies is likely to be slender. Walmsley and Lewis offer an accessible and systematic account of how psychology and geo- graphy, working together, can provide an under- standing of human behaviour and how a 'multi- plicity of viewpoints offers different but often com- plementary perspectives on why the world is as it is' (p. 28). Add to this a rich set of figures and an extensive reference list, within an attractive and readily digested format and the end product becomes an irresistible addition to the reading lists of under- graduate courses in human geography, environ- mentai psychology, planning and urban living and design.

R e f e r e n c e s

Bunting, T. E. & Guelke, L. (1979). Behavioral and perception geography. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 69, 448-462.

Cloke, P., Philo, P. & Sadler, D. (1991). Approaching Human Geography: An Introduction to Contemporary Theoretical Debates. London: Paul Chapman.

Garling, T. & Golledge, R. (Eds.) (1993). Behaviour and Environ- ment: Psychological and Geographical Approaches. North Holland: Elsevier

Gold, J. R. (1980). An Introduction to Behavioural Geography. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

82 H. M a t t h e w s

Golledge, R. G. (1988). Science and humanism in geography: multiple languages in multiple realities. In R. G. Golledge, H. Conclens & P. Gould, Eds., A Ground for Common Search. Santa Barbara, CA: The Geographical Press, pp. 63-71.

Johnson R. J. (1987). Geography and Geographers. London: Edward Arnold.

Kobyashi, A. & MacKenzie, S. (Eds.). Remaking Human Geo- graphy. London: Unwin Hyman.

Matthews, M. H. (1992). Making Sense of Place: Children's Understanding of Large-scale Environments. London: Harvester- Wheatsheaf.

Pocock, D. C. D. & Hudson, R. (1978). Images of the Urban Environment. London: Macmillan.

Seamon D. (1987). Phenomenology and environmental research. In E. H. Zube and G. T. Moore, Eds.,Advances in Environment, Behavior, and Design. New York, NY: Plenum, vol. 1. pp. 3-27.

Spencer, C., Blades, M. & Morsley, K. (1989). The Child in the Physical Environment: The Development of Spatial Knowledge and Cognition. Chichester: Wiley.

Walmsley, D. J. & Lewis, G. J. (1984) Human Geography: Behavioural Approaches. London: Longman.