Processes of Place Identification and Residential Satisfaction

Abstract

What are the connections between an individual's satisfaction with his or her neighborhood and the processes of identifying with the location? A path model was tested in which the length of residence promotes the identification processes, which are in turn likely to influence the degree of satisfaction with the residential environment. The components of residential satisfaction were also isolated to show that all the components of satisfaction are not equally affected by identification. A survey was taken with a sampling of 257 participants all residing in an urban environment in three major French cities. A scale of residential satisfaction and a scale of place identification were used. The tested model shows a good fit with the data. Furthermore, the results show that an individual's sense of identification with his or her neighborhood interacts primarily with the social aspects of satisfaction.