8.4- Representations Of Place And The Use Of Quantitative And Qualitative Sources

Question 1

What is qualitative data?

Answer 1

Non-numerical information (data) and used in a relatively unstructured and open-ended way- it is descriptive information often derived from interviews or artistic depictions such as photographs and so has a subjective nature

Question 2

What is quantitative data?

Answer 2

Objective numerical data that can be quantified and verified and is amenable to statistical manipulation

Question 3

Discuss representation of place and the use of quantitative and qualitative sources

Answer 3

• place can be represented in a variety of forms or media that may give contrasting images
• we rely on many different images of places to inform and construct the meaning we attach to them
• e.g. poetry about places can inspire patriotism
• these meanings affect our decision-making – whether we visit a place, invest in a place or even care about a place
• place-meanings created by people matter, particularly to the economy

Question 4

Discuss reliability regarding secondary sources

Answer 4

-secondary sources supply information via another person’s experience, their eye or lens.
-each secondary source is an act of interpretation. Sometimes the message gets lost in translation.
Even photography, which you might assume is the most straightforward for of representation has its problems.
-whether it is the work of a film director, artist, composer or novelist, we should always remember that these sources offer us a subjective perspective – a personally curated view of a place. All are selective and therefore open to accusations of inaccuracy. What have they left out?
-we interpret the data we are given and add our own subjectivity. For example we might like or dislike a piece of art depicting a place. Our feelings about that place or the piece of art may affect our views on how reliable the art is as a source. Our views are shaped by our own experiences, education and background.
-when investigating place-meaning it is always a good policy to use more than one source or text.

Question 5

What is a source’s provenance?

Answer 5

context in which the source or text was produced and about its creator

Question 6

What are key questions to ask when analysing a source?

Answer 6

When and by whom was it produced? What was its purpose? Does it support or contest the views of dominant groups or powerful ideologies at the time?

How does it compare to other available texts about the place? Was it produced earlier or later than them, inspired by them or as a reaction to them?

Look for subtexts or hidden texts – what is the source that is being studied being silent about? This means, what was the author aware of as being relevant, but has chosen to leave out of their work, such as men, women, the economy or the environment?

How does the text relate to wider relevant geographies or processes in society, such as industrialisation, deindustrialisation, globalisation or the emancipation of women?

Question 7

Discuss statistics

Answer 7

• the UK census has detailed the social and economic characteristics of the population for over 200 years.
• smaller geographical units can reveal information about places e.g. age and gender structure, ethnicity and levels of economic deprivation.
• the census provides large-scale quantitative data, which is used by national agencies to understand and plan for demographic changes.

Question 8

Evaluate statistics

Answer 8

-the use of quantitative data such as statistics is not as objective as it may first appear:

1- people selectively choose the data they wish to use for their particular purpose. Their use therefore becomes subjective

2- another criticism of using statistics when studying place is they tell us very little about the human experience of place and what it is like to live there

Question 9

Discuss the use of maps

Answer 9

-maps are used to locate places, but can also influence how we think or feel about a place and as such play a very important role in both our sense of place and perception of place.

• it is important to cast a critical eye over the reliability and accuracy of maps:
• throughout history maps have distorted reality e.g.
• early world maps depicted the world as flat with the Holy Land at the centre.
• during the period of colonial expansion maps exaggerated area size and resources (and this strategic importance).
• the Mercator map projection is commonly used in geography classrooms, but it distorts the size of landmasses, is based on the convention that the northern hemisphere is at the top and is Eurocentric (it exaggerates the size of Europe and puts it in the centre)
• Google Maps is a search engine and whilst useful for researching place it is not done in a strictly objective way. Google Maps, like any search engine filters place - directing people towards businesses that have engineered their appearance to the first page of a Google search

Question 10

What are the evaluation points for maps?

Answer 10

Reliability and accuracy of maps have to be considered.
Maps can include hidden bias and influence.
Search engines filter place e.g. google maps

Question 11

What is counter-mapping?

Answer 11

Counter-mapping describes a bottom-up process by which people produce their own maps, informed by their own local knowledge and understanding of places.
The result is that the map not only provides factual information, but it also conveys a sense of place.

Question 12

What’s an example of counter-mapping?

Answer 12

The artists and cartographer Adam Dant illustrated a map of East London in Spitalfields with fifty portraits of the people who make the area distinctive. On the reverse is a guide to essential spitalfields landmarks and destinations. The result is that the map not only provides factual information but it also conveys a sense of place

Question 13

What evaluation for counter-mapping?

Answer 13

Advantage is that it includes factual information and a sense of place (rare that source can provide both)

Question 14

What is bio-mapping?

Answer 14

One method of trying to measure sense of place is biomapping or emotional cartography.
This is the mapping of emotions shown by people to certain places through the use of a device which records the wearer’s Galvanic Skin Response (GSR).
This is a simple indicator of emotional response in conjunction with a geographical location.
A map can be created which visualises points of high and low feelings.

Question 15

Give an example of bio-mapping

Answer 15

on the television series ‘Coasts’, an experiment was done on a man walking around London and at the seaside. Whilst walking in London there were spikes in energy when catching an underground train and crossing busy road. The map at the seaside showed lower stress levels. This was put down to the physical environment of the coast – a combination of natural elements such as the hypnotic and soothing sound of the waves, the feel of the sand under his feet and sea breeze.
Quantifiable data was produced in this experiment to back up the widely-held cultural notion that going to the seaside is good for you.

Question 16

What are the evaluation points for interviews?

Answer 16

Disadvantages include interviewer bias, in which the interviewer may affect the responses of the interviewee by using leading questions.
People like to present themselves in a favourable light and therefore may not be honest should also be taken into consideration (social desirability bias

Question 17

When carrying out fieldwork involving interviews it is also important to consider:

Answer 17

• time consuming compared other data collection methods.
• a small sample of interviews is not representative of a whole population, but illustrative – sample chosen is informed by what you want explore.
• more opportunity for explanation / additional information that may not be gained from questionnaires

Question 18

What is ethnography? (Part of interviews)

Answer 18

a research method that explores what people do as well as what they say.
For example, to understand different places as they are experienced and understood from the ‘inside’, the ethnographer would participate in the daily life of a person or group of people, watching what happens, listening to what is said and generally becoming part of that world

Question 19

Discuss interviews

Answer 19

Interviews can generate insights about a person’s sense of place or perception of place- they are first-hand or direct reports of experiences, opinions and feelings. Interviews can be structured or unstructured

Question 20

Media representation of place- knowledge and understanding of place can be influenced by a diverse media including television, film, photography, art, books, newspapers and the internet; these are increasingly reaching a larger, global audience and are therefore

Answer 20

Very important in shaping wider perceptions of place. In addition, this has meant that geographical distance has become less of an obstacle for learning about places when people can gain instant knowledge about them from media sources. The notion of ‘near’ and ‘far’ places is becoming increasingly blurred as people develop attachments to places they have never visited through media

Question 21

Discuss photographs

Answer 21

At a time when photo-editing of people is commonplace, so places can be easily ‘photoshopped’ to make them appear different and, in the case of tourist areas, more attractive (aesthetically pleasing). Often the difference between a photograph of a particular place and the reality is often down to differences in weather or time of the year. But, with advancing technology, people are increasingly editing photographs to improve the image or perception of place

Question 22

What are the evaluation points of photographs

Answer 22

❌ deceiving to improve deception of place, particularly in tourist areas e.g. using filters on photographs, taking photographs in summer or spring for example
❌ selective in what they show- marketing images tend to focus on the natural beauty or landscape of places without the disturbance from humans; the reality for many tourists may be very different

Question 23

Textual sources may evoke a sense of place- a feeling that the reader knows what it is like to ‘be there’. Some places have become so strongly associated with particular authors and stories that they are now

Answer 23

Promoted or advertised as such e.g. area of West Yorkshire and East Lancashire known as ‘Brontë country’- while such associations can play a positive role in the representation of place, the reverse can also be true and the role of popular media e.g. newspapers and television can be instrumental in creating ‘place prejudice’. An example of this would be the city of Liverpool, one of a number of (mainly northern) British cities that has historically suffered from a negative portrayal in his British media. Unemployment, economic deprivation, gangs, rioting and drug problems were all characteristic of ‘Scouse’ depictions in the press in the late 20th century = city authorities adopted an aggressive re-branding of the city to distance it from this poor media image- in 2008, the city awarded the status of European Capital of Culture, reflecting Liverpool’s more positive architectural, musical and sporting heritage

Question 24

Discuss poetry

Answer 24

Poetry has long been used to describe and evoke a sense of place. There are many famous poets associated with particular places e.g. William Wordsworth is linked to the Lake District. Poets may refer to specific places in personal and responsive ways but they also enable the reader to sense and imagine what it feels like to be in that place as an insider or outsider depending of nature of the poem

Question 25

Evaluate poetry

Answer 25

❌The same place can be represented in different ways in different poems – when comparing them consider the imagery, choice of vocabulary and the overall mood of each poem = may vary drastically in the deception of a place

Question 26

Discuss music

Answer 26

Music can help to evoke a sense of place. Different types of music may be associated with geographical areas, such as reggae with Jamaica. Song lyrics may also help to portray particular places. E.g. a Newport rapper and singer became an internet sensation after producing a parody of the Jay-Z and Alicia Keys song about New York – a spoof version of Empire State of Mind received almost 200 000 hits with 2 days of being on YouTube (“concrete jungle nothing in order”)

Question 27

Discuss television and film

Answer 27

Places are a vital backdrop to most dramas. Certain places are associated with different types of stories, such as derelict houses in horror films or space ships in science fiction. TV shows and films also play a significant role in representing place and this can be positive and negative.

Question 28

What is the poldark effect?

Answer 28

The TV dramatization of the Poldark novels had a positive impact on the Cornish tourist trade as viewers were inspired by shots of the landscape. Hits on Visit Cornwall’s website soared by 65% after the first episode and Rightmove reported house hunting enquiries more than doubled. It is anticipated the Poldark effect will be felt into the 2020s.

Question 29

Discuss television and film further

Answer 29

Places can also be represented in a negative way. Many crime dramas are located in urban areas, but not all crime occurs in cities.
The sites chosen for filming can portray the same place in different lights – compare, for example, EastEnders with the more glamorous skylines in The Apprentice. British Pathé is a multimedia resource with film documentary and newsreel archive material from the 20th Century. It is a useful audio-visual source which can be used to document changes in place and population over a period of time.

Question 30

Discuss art

Answer 30

Art has long been used to represent place.
This is most famously seen in the landscape paintings of the 18th and 19th Century.
Painters became synonymous with geographical places. E.g ‘Constable Country’.
The common criticism of such paintings was that they were pastoral fantasies giving the impression of a rural idyll, which did not exist for the majority of people living in the countryside at that time. These paintings reflected a romantic vision which still shapes many people’s mental images of the countryside and is perpetuated through tourist brochures, chocolate boxes and jigsaw puzzles. Such constructs of rural places are powerful because they shape views on what the countryside is actually like and what it should be like.

Question 31

What are the evaluation points for art?

Answer 31

Paintings may be considered less reliable than photographs because there is more scope for individual interpretation and selection. However, they can also show a deeper understanding of place because they allow the painter to show more of the character of what is there.
A painting may be a snapshot in time.

Question 32

Where art has been used to depict place, it is important to ask a number of questions and view it as a cultural product:

Answer 32

What and who are shown in the picture, and why?
What and who are not shown, and why?
Why did the artist paint this scene and who commissioned it?

Question 33

Discuss graffiti

Answer 33

Graffiti is writing or drawing that has been put illicitly on a wall or other surface, often in a public place.
It has traditionally been associated with youth cultures claiming ownership of a place, but the famous UK graffiti artist Banksy argues that the importance of graffiti is also to give a voice to people who aren’t normally heard in the mainstream.
Many consider graffiti as a type of vandalism and authorities are keen to remove it from public areas.
Increasingly, however, graffiti is being accepted into mainstream culture and art galleries may now stock graffiti images. In these places, graffiti is not being seen as ‘out of place’ but as something which can be bought and sold. It is also being used as a type of street art in the regeneration of places.

Question 34

What’s an example of Banksy’s work?

Answer 34

Dismaland, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset was an art installation by Banksy in a derelict seafront lido. Banksy’s work brought significant benefits to the resort which has experienced decline in the last few decades. It is estimated that an additional 150 000 people visited the town as a result of the attraction and they added £20 million to the economy. More importantly, local tourist chiefs were pleased it helped put the place of Weston-Super-Mare more firmly on the map.

Question 35

Discuss place and architecture

Answer 35

As well as designing buildings, architects are responsible for planning places and this planning is seen as increasingly important in terms of creating sustainable and healthy places.
Architecture can also play a key role in the redevelopment and rebranding of a place.
Some redevelopment schemes utilise the existing style or heritage of buildings in an area; others involve more radical change as part of a rebranding process.
Redevelopment of place comes at a cost for some. The process of gentrification has been strongly promoted by local government in many British cities as a method of economic regeneration (link to Contemporary Urban Environments for understanding of this process). Gentrification may lead to poorer residents being ‘displaced’ as they can no longer afford to live in the area.
A similar process has occurred in British coastal resorts where second-home owners have priced less affluent locals out of the market.

Question 36

What’s an example for place and architecture?

Answer 36

Redevelopment of the Bull Ring in central Birmingham. A much more radical redevelopment incorporating the construction of the iconic Selfridges department store with a façade of 15,000 aluminium discs mounted onto a blue background. It has been seen as one of several architectural landmarks, including the city library, which have made a major contribution to the regeneration of central Birmingham.

Question 37

Discuss digital or augmented place

Answer 37

The rise in the use of digital technology has led to much discussion about the notion of digital place.
Parallel interactive places such as Second Life and Runescape have existed for some time but these are seen as virtual places rather than real places.
The development of GPS-capable mobile devices has meant that real places have become ‘layered’ and ‘augmented’ by technological advances and applications and his can have a huge impact on our sense of place.
Smartphones know where we are and are linked to data that knows where other people are too.
They can provide information and reviews about place in seconds.
GIS and software developers have been engaging in place for some time.
Supermarkets employ GIS to map shopping habits and where customers live.
Police forces want to know about the links between crime and place.
Politicians want to know about place so that they can focus their time and money at voters.

Question 38

GIS sources are increasing in number and becoming more readily available as free online resources.
They could be used in place studies to illustrate

Answer 38

changing demographic and cultural characteristics and economic change and social inequalities

Question 39

Discuss ‘big data’

Answer 39

Big data is big in terms of its scale:
-the number of responses
-the variety of data sets
-the size of populations
It requires huge amounts of computational power (servers. algorithms).
It has huge potential.
Lots of social and economic data sets fall into this category.
There are different definitions of big data but they each have several things in common:
Volume – the data is not a sample, it is a record of whole data sets / population of users.
Velocity – often real-time information, for example purchase transactions.
Digital footprint – may be a cost-free by-product of digital interaction, for example, Tweets, Facebook posts at any given moment.

Question 40

What are some responses to ‘big data’?

Answer 40

Because a lot of big data has a spatial element (everything happens somewhere and most of the time these activities are geo-tagged), analysts claim to be able to use it to make predictions that relate to the population of an area.
Their predictions may inform more cost-effective allocation of resources or, in the case of election campaigns, help a candidate to win by targeting key voters.
However, this is still a new area of computer science and statistical analysis and, as with any quantitative source, predictions made using big data are only as good as the quality of the data and people’s understanding and interpretations of it.
Concerns have been raised by some groups of people about the idea that our every move or browse online can be monitored and is traceable using big data. However, the vast scale of data produced on a daily basis should allay the fears of most about ‘Big Brother’ watching you.