Place attachment in the metropolitan areas: A case study in Málaga (Spain)

Abstract

The intention is to identify some characteristics of civic life in peripheral areas of main urban centers, through the analysis of a series of focal interviews with the inhabitants of La Cala del Moral, belonging to the municipality of Rincón de la Victoria in the metropolitan area of Málaga, oriented to explore their place bonding. Content analysis and quantification of the answers has set the satisfaction of the population majority with their life in the town, and has allowed to relate its conceptual evolution with another study carried out in 2010. It is observed a variation in place attachment, from emotional and social feelings towards functional elements: Comfort and tranquility. There is also a substantial reduction in knowledge of the city, associated with disinterest in the urban space. The importance of social cohesion for the successful working of an urban center recommends continuing to investigate the characteristics and evolution of citizen life, since the advance of climate change will require resilient cities.