Explaining the effectiveness of urban neighborhoods vitality among place attachment dimensions, Case study: Ahvaz city

Achieving dynamic and vibrant locations has always been one of the major concerns of planners, designers and city managers. This concept in urban neighborhoods, formed at higher levels due to the continued presence of inhabitants as well as the quality of human-location and human-human relations, is influenced by the factors associated with human connection with its residential place, such as place attachment. This case study examines the effect of the multi-dimensional concept of place attachment and its dimension on the vitality of urban neighborhoods.
So the questions of research are:

What is the effect of place attachment of residents on vitality of Ahvaz city neighborhoods?
Which component of place attachment has more effect on vitality of Ahvaz city neighborhoods?

The method used in the study is a mixed research method (qualitative-quantitative) and practical in terms of purpose. In the qualitative section, the data gathering tool was a semi-organized interview with 26 people including 14 women and 12 men and a coding analysis method along with a four-step reduction of concepts. In the quantitative part, data was collected through a questionnaire, and data analysis was carried out using SPSS software and drawing the structural equation of variables’ relationships within Amos Graphic software. Statistical society was Ahvaz city residents and sample size was 392 respondents that had completed  in selected neighborhood (Bagh-Sheykh and Kian-Abad) based on randomized population balancing method (respectively 101 and 291 questionnaire).

In the first step, qualitative semi-organized interview resulted in 17 components and 5 dimensions for the place attachment variable. Quantitative part of research shows that all 5 analyzed components of place attachment are greater than supposed average (3) and the lowest amount is for place dependence. Residents analysis of neighborhoods vitality is significantly greater than supposed average and in Bagh-Sheykh neighborhood, it is greater a little more than Kian-Abad, although this  difference is in not statistically significant. While confirming the fit of the designed model of the main research variables (value χ^2⁄df =4.908 & RMSEA= 0.100), also, the results of the quantitative part supports the direct and significant impact of place attachment on urban vitality (the standard coefficient of the route is 0.806 and the significance coefficient is less than 0.0001). Also, the direct effects model of five-fold dimension of place attachment on urban vitality, confirms the direct effect of place identity dimensions, emotional-cognitive connection, and place dependence on the vitality of urban neighborhoods; showing that place identity is the most effective dimension of place attachment concerning urban vitality.

This research confirmed the positive effect of place attachment of residents on vitality of Ahvaz city neighborhoods and showed that place identity is the most important effective component of place attachment on vitality of Ahvaz city neighborhoods. So, in general, since forming of vitality in urban neighborhoods is connected with place and affected by place-base communities, yet  vitality is one of components of urban spaces qualities, so this concept is related with qualities of people-place links such as place attachment.