Sense of place: Mount Desert Island residents and Acadia National Park

Abstract

The framework of sense of place, developed by humanistic geographers, has been employed by researchers in their efforts to explain the range of attachments, values, and meanings assigned to natural areas. This study used an exploratory approach to address the range of values and meanings assigned by local residents to places in Acadia National Park. Qualitative interviews were used as a scoping instrument to identify characteristic places and place values in Acadia National Park. Interview findings informed a mail-back questionnaire administered to a representative sample of local residents. Research findings address the range of values assigned to places in Acadia National Park. Implications of sense of place research for management of national parks are also discussed.

Parent Publication

• Proceedings of the 1997 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium

Citation

Ballinger, Nicole L.; Manning, Robert E. 1998. Sense of place: Mount Desert Island residents and Acadia National Park. In: Vogelsong, Hans G., comp, ed. Proceedings of the 1997 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium; 1997 April 6 - 9; Bolton Landing, NY. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-241. Radnor, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 85-88.