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Theorizing Critical Placemaking as a Tool for Reclaiming Public Space
Author(s) -
Toolis Erin E.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1002/ajcp.12118
Subject(s) - placemaking , sociology , public space , community psychology , health psychology , injustice , narrative , citizen journalism , social inequality , public relations , inequality , environmental ethics , social psychology , public health , political science , psychology , urban planning , urban design , engineering , civil engineering , architectural engineering , medicine , linguistics , philosophy , mathematical analysis , nursing , mathematics , law
As economic inequality and segregation continue to grow in the U.S., psychology has an important role to play in exploring and promoting processes that can disrupt social injustice. This paper identifies the privatization of public space as a social problem that contributes to the entrenchment of social, economic, and racial inequality, and advances “critical placemaking” as a tool for reclaiming public space for public use. Drawing from key concepts in environmental psychology, narrative psychology, and community psychology, the proposed framework seeks to theorize the processes by which placemaking may contribute to transforming community narratives and building more inclusive, participatory, and democratic communities. Policy implications and future directions for empirical work are discussed.