Social Science
Toward User-Generated Content as a Mechanism of Digital Placemaking—Place Experience Dimensions in Spatial Media
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Maciej Główczynski
Maciej Główczynski
Faculty of Human Geography and Planning, Adam Mickiewicz University, Pozna ´n, Krygowskiego
Abstract
Spatial media bring out new forms of interaction with places, leading to the emergence of new ways of embodying the experience. The perception of place and its dynamics of change has been multiplied by the emergence of digital platforms, which create many and varied representations of place in spatial media. These representations are dependent on the digital platforms’ ecosystem, formed by platform-specific mechanisms of digital placemaking. The study applied text mining techniques and statistical methods to explore the role of user-generated content as a digital placemaking practice in shaping place experience. The online reviews were collected from Google Maps for 23 places from Poznań, Poland. The analysis showed that place experience is described by three dimensions: attributes, practices and atmosphere, or place practices that most closely reflect the specificity of a place. The place attributes blurred the boundaries between their digital images, whereas the atmosphere dimension reduces the diversity and uniqueness of the place. In conclusion, user-generated content (UGC) as an element of the process of digital placemaking increases place awareness and democratizes human participation in its creation, yet it affects its reduction to homogeneous information processed through mechanisms operating within a given digital platform.
Key Questions
What is the central focus of the study on digital placemaking?
The study focuses on understanding how user-generated content can serve as a mechanism for digital placemaking, exploring how users interact with and experience places in virtual environments using spatial media.
How does the study define "digital placemaking"?
Digital placemaking refers to the process of creating, enhancing, or transforming spaces through digital media platforms, where users actively contribute content that shapes their experiences of a particular place.
What are the key place experience dimensions explored in the paper?
The paper explores dimensions such as emotional connection, social interaction, and sensory engagement within digital spaces, examining how these factors shape the experience of virtual places through user-generated content.
What role does user-generated content play in spatial media?
User-generated content plays a significant role in spatial media by allowing users to actively shape the narrative and experience of a place, thereby fostering a sense of ownership and deeper engagement with digital environments.
How does the paper contribute to the understanding of virtual spaces?
The study contributes by providing insights into how virtual spaces, shaped by user contributions, create dynamic, participatory experiences that reflect personal and collective interpretations of place.
