Bettina Van Hoven
University of Groningen, Cultural Geography, Faculty Member
- Geography, Gender, Visual Studies, Cultural Geography, Youth Culture, Participatory Research, and 13 moreSense of Place, Community Based Natural Resources Management, Participatory Media, Rural Geography, Place-Identity (Architecture), Visual Methodologies, Qualitative Methods, Production of Knowledge, Place Attachment, Multi sensory Geographies, Landscape, Youth, Older people, Eastern Europe, and Environmental Sustainabilityedit
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This paper addresses the in- and exclusivity of, and of (in-)visibilities in the city for people with physical impairment by drawing on a participatory student research project. Students at the University College Groningen collaborated... more
This paper addresses the in- and exclusivity of, and of (in-)visibilities in the city for people with physical impairment by drawing on a participatory student research project. Students at the University College Groningen collaborated with students from the Art Academy Minerva and clients at the Noorderbrug, an organisation that provides housing and care for people with acquired brain injuries. The project entailed some specific challenges of communication (e.g. Sometimes mediated by eye-tracking speech computers) and rhythms and mobilities, yet the research teams (with members of each of the above institutions) were encouraged to explore and experience the city together. Their journeys were documented using visual methods and these visuals (photos and sometimes video) formed the basis of a public exhibition both at the Noorderbrug and the University College. In this exhibition, the research teams convey a sense of in- and exclusivities, of (in)visibilities, of difference and samen...
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This paper reports upon collaborative NWO-AHRC research conducted by UK and Dutch cultural geographers and artists into tidal ecologies of place in the UK and Holland and beyond. Tidal zones are extraordinarily dynamic spaces which... more
This paper reports upon collaborative NWO-AHRC research conducted by UK and Dutch cultural geographers and artists into tidal ecologies of place in the UK and Holland and beyond. Tidal zones are extraordinarily dynamic spaces which generate complex ecologies which interconnect land and sea, air and water as elements, salt water and fresh water as variations of the latter, and a range of eco-social assemblages. All these interconnecting processes are set in series of rhythms driven by tidal cycles. Tides literally mix space, time and materiality. Tidal processes in different locations vary markedly in term of range, the habitats and ecologies generated, and in the way local culture and economy engage with them (ecologies of place). For a range of reasons which include possible climate change induced sea level rise, and various forms of development and exploitation, tidal areas around the world, and the important interconnected natural and culture they support, are under a great deal ...
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How can educators (teachers, professors, trainers) address issues of gender, women, gender roles, feminism and gender equality? The ATHENA thematic network brings together specialists in women’s and gender studies, feminist research,... more
How can educators (teachers, professors, trainers) address issues of gender, women, gender roles, feminism and gender equality? The ATHENA thematic network brings together specialists in women’s and gender studies, feminist research, women’s rights, gender equality and diversity. In the book series ‘Teaching with Gender’ the partners in this network have collected articles on a wide range of teaching practices in the field of gender. The books in this series address challenges and possibilities of teaching about women and gender in a wide range of educational contexts. The authors discuss the pedagogical, theoretical and political dimensions of learning and teaching on women and gender. The books in this series contain teaching material, reflections on feminist pedagogies and practical discussions about the development of gender-sensitive curricula in specific fields. All books address the crucial aspects of education in Europe today: increasing international mobility, the growing i...
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Research Interests: Sociology, Cultural Studies, Geography, Human Geography, Cultural Geography, and 15 moreEconomic Geography, Social Sciences, Health, Sociology of Ageing, Social and cultural geography, Older Adults, Mobility, Perspective, People, Aging in Place, Healthy Aging, The Netherlands, Place Making, Go Along Interviews, and Environments
The value of ‘the arts’ in community development is increasingly being recognized. This paper contributes to emerging insights on the various impacts of the arts on communities by highlighting when and how they can have binding and... more
The value of ‘the arts’ in community development is increasingly being recognized. This paper contributes to emerging insights on the various impacts of the arts on communities by highlighting when and how they can have binding and dividing effects on a community. We draw on a participatory research project conducted in Pingjum, a village in the Netherlands that hosts many cultural activities and in which many artists live. We discuss how the arts in Pingjum influence the community in the village. In our discussion, we pay attention to the sense of community that the arts generate, the meeting opportunities they provide and how the community is engaged by some artists. Our study shows that the influence of the arts is context-dependent, with the arts having both binding and dividing effects on the community in Pingjum. In terms of the value of the arts for community development, we emphasize three key issues: that the arts (i) do not have only advantages for a community; (ii) do not...
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In this qualitative study we explore the experienced impact of studentification on ageing-in-place (i.e., ageing in one’s own home and neighbourhood for as long as possible). Studentification, which refers to concentrations of students in... more
In this qualitative study we explore the experienced impact of studentification on ageing-in-place (i.e., ageing in one’s own home and neighbourhood for as long as possible). Studentification, which refers to concentrations of students in residential neighbourhoods, has been associated with deteriorating community cohesion by several authors. This can negatively affect existing neighbourhood support structures. In examining this topic, we draw on in-depth interviews with 23 independently living older adults (65+) which were conducted in a studentified urban neighbourhood in the Netherlands. Our results show how the influx of students in the neighbourhood negatively affected older adults’ feelings of residential comfort. In spite of this, none of the participants expressed the desire to move; they experienced a sense of familiarity and valued the proximity of shops, public transport and health services, which allowed them to live independently. To retain a sense of residential master...
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To demonstrate the potential of time in understanding older adults’ experiences of place, this paper draws attention to the everyday temporal dimensions of ageing in urban neighbourhoods. In this qualitative research, we utilise... more
To demonstrate the potential of time in understanding older adults’ experiences of place, this paper draws attention to the everyday temporal dimensions of ageing in urban neighbourhoods. In this qualitative research, we utilise Lefebvre’s Rhythmanalysis to illustrate how the rhythmic orderings of people and place come into being and inform their experiences. Rhythmanalysis proved to be a useful tool in eliciting how the social construction of ageing in social policy, with its focus on activity and work, becomes embodied in older adults’ everyday lives in terms of how they value their own rhythms. The findings reveal how the contrasting daily rhythms of the older respondents and younger residents emphasise the slowness of the rhythms of later life. To counteract the negative connotations of these slowed rhythms, respondents sought temporal anchors that would enable them to experience daily life in their neighbourhood as eventful. That the rhythms of older and younger residents were ...
Research Interests: Psychology, Human Geography, Cultural Geography, Social Geography, Social Sciences, and 13 moreQualitative methodology, Rhythm, Embodied Cognition, Urban Studies, Urban And Regional Planning, Time geography, Applied Economics, Rhythmanalysis, Everyday Life, Older Adults, Ageing in Place, Age-friendly Communities, and Ageing
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It has been argued that attachment to place increases wellbeing in old age (Wiles et al., 2009). Feeling ‘in place’ can increase an older person's wellbeing. For older migrants it can be a challenge to live in-between cultures. The... more
It has been argued that attachment to place increases wellbeing in old age (Wiles et al., 2009). Feeling ‘in place’ can increase an older person's wellbeing. For older migrants it can be a challenge to live in-between cultures. The objective of the article is to explore how older Antillean migrants derive a sense of wellbeing from attachment to their everyday places. We do so by drawing on in-depth interviews and a photography project with Antilleans who live in a senior cohousing community in a city in the Northern Netherlands. Based on the study, we conclude that the cohousing community acted as a central setting of experience from which the participants explored their wider surroundings and developed new attachments in the neighbourhood.
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Demographic Change, Ageing and Societal Challenges in Europe
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Mit diesem Artikel wollen wir zu aktuellen Diskussionen uber den Nutzen kreativer und kunstbasierter Verfahren in der Community -Resilienzforschung beitragen, wobei wir auf Erfahrungen aus einer partizipativen Studie ruckgreifen, die wir... more
Mit diesem Artikel wollen wir zu aktuellen Diskussionen uber den Nutzen kreativer und kunstbasierter Verfahren in der Community -Resilienzforschung beitragen, wobei wir auf Erfahrungen aus einer partizipativen Studie ruckgreifen, die wir in einem niederlandischen Dorf durchgefuhrt haben. Wir berichten uber die in drei Projektphasen genutzten Methoden – Walking Interviews , Gruppendiskussionen und einen Workshop – und daruber, wie wir die jeweiligen Herausforderungen gemeistert haben, um zu einem fur jede Projektphase unterschiedlichen, facettenreichen Wissen zu gelangen. Wir hoffen, dass die Diskussion der Implikationen der Anwendung von kunstbasierten Methoden im Projektverlauf fur andere Wissenschaftler/innen hilfreich ist, da bisher nur wenig an methodologischer Reflexion hieruber verfugbar ist. Trotz einiger Schwierigkeiten., die zu bewaltigen waren, haben diese Methoden aus unserer Perspektive wichtige Potenziale fur Community- Resilienzforschung: Sie verhalfen in unserem Fall ...
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Research Interests: Human Geography and Area
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En aquest article, les autores reflexionen sobre l’ús dels treballs de camp conduïts per l’alumnat com un exemple de pedagogia feminista en un curs de geografia feminista impartit per les universitats d’Amsterdam i de Groningen, als... more
En aquest article, les autores reflexionen sobre l’ús dels treballs de camp conduïts per l’alumnat com un exemple de pedagogia feminista en un curs de geografia feminista impartit per les universitats d’Amsterdam i de Groningen, als Països Baixos. L’article és una coproducció entre tres professores titulars i una estudiant d’aquest curs, per tant, inclou la visió del professorat i de
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This chapter discusses young people’s citizenship experiences and learning in rural Estonia. The focus is on the key everyday relations and contexts – home, school, and leisure places – where citizenship is situated. The authors argue... more
This chapter discusses young people’s citizenship experiences and learning in rural Estonia. The focus is on the key everyday relations and contexts – home, school, and leisure places – where citizenship is situated. The authors argue that such different contexts provide different opportunities for acting and being and thus different opportunities for participation and citizenship learning. The age group in focus is young people between 15 and 19. This age group is of particular interest in political studies as a group close to accessing most formal (adult) political processes (18 years for many countries) and therefore a target of enhanced political awareness campaigns (such as civics education). The chapter concludes with a discussion on the relevance of recognizing young people’s everyday engagement.
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ABSTRACT Social capital has been a popular concept used in research and policy to stress the value of social contacts for the health and well-being of older adults. However, not much is known about the obstacles to and the opportunities... more
ABSTRACT Social capital has been a popular concept used in research and policy to stress the value of social contacts for the health and well-being of older adults. However, not much is known about the obstacles to and the opportunities for local social contacts in older adults’ everyday lives. In this paper we provide a geographical account of older adults’ social capital, by taking the main context of their daily life, the neighbourhood, into consideration. We draw on semi-structured and walking interviews with 17 older adults living in an urban neighbourhood in the Northern Netherlands in order to illustrate the meanings of, the obstacles to and the opportunities for local social contacts. Our findings show that the neighbourhood is not an isotropic surface where opportunities for developing social capital are evenly distributed. The potential benefits of older adults’ local social contacts differ depending on the place of social interaction within the neighbourhood and expectations associated with these interactions. Furthermore, different time geographies of older and younger residents as well as ageist stereotypes of older adults’ body capital influence the development of social capital in the neighbourhood.
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Chapter 10 On the Ground Bettina van Hoven and Louise Meijering Thinking Through the Production of Knowledge Whilst we do not wish to discredit ways of conducting research in the past, there is no denying that thinking about the research... more
Chapter 10 On the Ground Bettina van Hoven and Louise Meijering Thinking Through the Production of Knowledge Whilst we do not wish to discredit ways of conducting research in the past, there is no denying that thinking about the research process in social geography has ...
ABSTRACT This paper explores key shared places and practices through which young men in rural Estonia perform and construct masculine identities. Whereas powerful images of rural places and rural masculinity exist and are reproduced in... more
ABSTRACT This paper explores key shared places and practices through which young men in rural Estonia perform and construct masculine identities. Whereas powerful images of rural places and rural masculinity exist and are reproduced in public discourse in Estonia, not much is known about how masculinities are constructed by the ‘real’ rural men living in the countryside. In this paper, we draw on a participatory research project and focus on the everyday lives and places of young rural men in order to illustrate how masculine identity emerges in situated practice and interaction. Our findings show that rural gender identities are relational, dynamic and multi-faceted. The young rural men in our study actively performed different aspects of masculinities in relation to available physical resources and social groups. Our findings suggest that the young men are in the process of exploring a multiplicity of different ways of how to be a rural man while actively negotiating the rural context.
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In this qualitative study we explore the experienced impact of studentification on ageing-in-place (i.e., ageing in one's own home and neighbourhood for as long as possible). Studentification, which refers to concentrations of... more
In this qualitative study we explore the experienced impact of studentification on ageing-in-place (i.e., ageing in one's own home and neighbourhood for as long as possible). Studentification, which refers to concentrations of students in residential neighbourhoods, has been associated with deteriorating community cohesion by several authors. This can negatively affect existing neighbourhood support structures. In examining this topic, we draw on in-depth interviews with 23 independently living older adults (65+) which were conducted in a studentified urban neighbourhood in the Netherlands. Our results show how the influx of students in the neighbourhood negatively affected older adults' feelings of residential comfort. In spite of this, none of the participants expressed the desire to move; they experienced a sense of familiarity and valued the proximity of shops, public transport and health services, which allowed them to live independently. To retain a sense of residentia...
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For older people living in densely populated urban neighbourhoods, walking is an important mode of everyday mobility: it allows to engage in neighbourhood social life and can mitigate physiological decline, which is emphasised in healthy... more
For older people living in densely populated urban neighbourhoods, walking is an important mode of everyday mobility: it allows to engage in neighbourhood social life and can mitigate physiological decline, which is emphasised in healthy ageing discourses. However, walking is also a means through which meanings about the places of one's everyday life are (re)produced and, hence, contributes to feelings of illbeing and wellbeing. In this paper, we provide a phenomenological account of older adults' place-making practices through walking. In examining this topic, we draw on twelve walking interviews with older adults living independently in two urban neighbourhoods in the Netherlands. Our findings reveal that although our respondents developed a sense of 'insideness' through their spatial and social routes and routines, these same routes and routines also acted as exclusionary mechanisms. We argue that these 'meaningful movements', characterised by ambivalence, remain underexposed in healthy ageing discourses. Paying attention to these feelings and experiences would allow for a better understanding of the facilitators and impediments of walking in later life and its effect on social and emotional wellbeing. This paper concludes by providing implications for policy and planning practice in developing age-friendly and walkable neighbourhoods.
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Using the case study of a New Zealand rugby club, in this article, we highlight the role of gender and performance in place attachment. We discuss various performances that contribute to achieving a sense of attachment of club members to... more
Using the case study of a New Zealand rugby club, in this article, we highlight the role of gender and performance in place attachment. We discuss various performances that contribute to achieving a sense of attachment of club members to the (imagined) community of the rugby club and the different physical spaces of its home ground. Even though performances are played out and read against the backdrop of a popular
discourse of New Zealand rugby masculinity, we did not observe characteristics of stereotypical ‘rugby masculinity’ in all rugby places, nor were performances the same throughout one day. Instead, variations were found depending on whether performance was ‘front stage’ or ‘backstage’.
discourse of New Zealand rugby masculinity, we did not observe characteristics of stereotypical ‘rugby masculinity’ in all rugby places, nor were performances the same throughout one day. Instead, variations were found depending on whether performance was ‘front stage’ or ‘backstage’.
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In the broader context of rural transformation and economic decline, and the socio-economic consequences associated with this, in this paper, we explore favorite/key places of a group of young people in rural British Columbia, and... more
In the broader context of rural transformation and economic decline, and the socio-economic consequences associated with this, in this paper, we explore favorite/key places of a group of young people in rural British Columbia, and specifically the village of Cedar. We analyze young people's affective ties to place by describing the meanings places have for them in terms of social relations, physical characteristics and individual aspects such as emotions, memories and imagination (see Altman and Low 1992; Gustafson 2001; Panelli et al. 2007 for more detail). Our data analysis is preceded by an introduction of the local context and broader issues related to the youth and rural change, and the discussion of place-attachment and its importance for young people in rural areas.
ABSTRACT Over the past 20 years, rural areas in Western societies have transformed from a production to a consumption space. Much research on rural diversification and revitalization has focused on farmers and their wives. However, it is... more
ABSTRACT Over the past 20 years, rural areas in Western societies have transformed from a production to a consumption space. Much research on rural diversification and revitalization has focused on farmers and their wives. However, it is useful to examine side activities run by non-farm women which have slowly emerged in the last few years. In view of discussions about rural decline, the value of such activities should be looked at in a new light. Although these activities may not significantly reverse unemployment figures, they have the potential to provide the social and emotional ‘glue’ to motivate a household to remain in declining areas as small-scale economic activities contribute to a better quality of life and a higher level of well-being. In this article we draw on the personal stories of women who undertake side activities in the Veenkoloniën, the Netherlands. We explore the factors that enable these women to start a side activity and the related organizational and emotional struggles they face while running such activities within the perimeter of their home. We further highlight the importance of side activities for the empowerment of women in rural households.
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The nightmare that is qualitative data:I had generated so many codes in a line-by-line analysis that they had become illegible on paper and difficult to administrate. I worried that I would only be able to fully investigate some aspects... more
The nightmare that is qualitative data:I had generated so many codes in a line-by-line analysis that they had become illegible on paper and difficult to administrate. I worried that I would only be able to fully investigate some aspects whilst, unwillingly, ignoring others. In ...
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It has been argued that attachment to place increases wellbeing in old age (Wiles et al., 2009). Feeling ‘in place’ can increase an older person’s wellbeing. For older migrants it can be a challenge to live in-between cultures. The... more
It has been argued that attachment to place increases wellbeing in old age (Wiles et al., 2009). Feeling ‘in place’ can increase an older person’s wellbeing. For older migrants it can be a challenge to live in-between cultures. The objective of the article is to explore how older Antillean migrants derive a sense of wellbeing from attachment to their everyday places. We do so by drawing on in-depth interviews and a photography project with Antilleans who live in a senior cohousing community in a city in the Northern Netherlands. Based on the study, we conclude that the cohousing community acted as a central setting of experience from which the participants explored their wider surroundings and developed new attachments in the neighbourhood.
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Paper presented at the The Nordic Geographers Meeting Tallinn & Tartu, Estonia on 15 – 19 June 2015. "Geographical Imagination: Interpretations of Nature, Art and Politics".