Abstract Type: Independent oral presentation
Abstract TitleAiming for Clarity while Embracing Ambiguity: The LIFE Framework of Interactional Community
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Abstract
Despite a rich history and continued popularity as an idea or term used for various purposes, the community concept remains nebulous and contested. Critics have long claimed that it is an outdated notion typically used in nostalgic fashion. Others, however, assert that the most important social science concepts are often the hardest to define, and that normative and analytically useful are not mutually exclusive. While community endures in the field, the environment is kept largely in the background in sociological applications. As part of a special issue examining the legacy of Ken Wilkinson’s interactional field theory, I argue that greater impact can be achieved through an extension that grounds the community concept in landscape and creates a framework built upon its material, ideal, and practical elements. After delineating the proposed LIFE framework, I utilize illustrative examples to demonstrate its application to local development and society in practice.
Related Conference Topic Area
place-making and senses of place
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Presenter Information
First Name Paul |
Last Name Van Auken |
Affiliation University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, USA |
Author(s) Information
Author | First Name | Last Name | Affiliation |
1 | Paul | Van Auken | University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, USA |