Although I finished reading The Power of Place a while ago, I never took the time to write here about the sections I found relevant to my research about cities and places. Yet there was a lot in this book that I found greatly interesting. The book’s author, Winifred Gallagher, tends to cite experts who can be considered as controversial, but overall I thought her work was pertinent.
This post is part of my research on cities and places.
The best coffee shop in Nelson, British Columbia, is also the best place to do some people-watching and understand what the town is really about. I’m savouring a cup of coffee on the large terrace of Oso Negro and letting my white skin progressively get redder under the sun of this warm summer day, when the guy sitting on the same bench starts talking to me. About his plans, about Nelson, and about following your dreams. He bought a piece of property somewhere in the mountains and is planning on moving there to start a small farm and grow some vegetables with the help of his friends and the occasional WWOOFer.
As part of my research on cities and personality, I’ve just finished perusing Richard Florida’s Who’s Your City. Florida says we should look at different factors when searching for the right city to move in. One of them is personality.
This shouldn’t be a secret to anybody that certain cities offer different types of stimulation. For instance, the American coasts are reknown for being creative hubs. One can feel stimulated by the amount of art galleries and other cultural offerings, and the general atmosphere that encourages residents to create, launch their own companies, go to the museum, etc. In return, these residents will contribute to solidify this environment, which in turn will attract more creative people, etc.
Florida argues that, because of this cycle, American cities end up having a personality of their own. After doing some extensive research, he’s found that their personality pretty much matches the Big Five personality traits usually applied to people: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, neuroticism. Therefore when we move to a new place, we should be aware not only of our own personality type, but also of the city’s personality. (To determine your personality type, you can do this online test: http://www.outofservice.com/bigfive/)
The Big Five model has been criticized and rightfully so; it is difficult to put personalities into categories and draw conclusions from that. Yet I do think this was a useful tool for this study. The maps that Florida created are shockingly compelling!
Here’s what Florida says of people belonging to the openness category and what it means for cities:
Certain personality types seem to require higher and more intense levels of stimulation – both literally and figuratively. They are drawn to extreme experience – complex music, intense tastes, exciting places, and eccentric people. It’s not by chance that people with these qualities happen to cluster in highly stimulating places, I thought. They are inclined, if not programmed, to seek them out.
Openness to experience is the only personality type that plays a consistent role in regional economic development. It is highly correlated with jobs in computing, science, arts, design, and entertainment; with overall human capital levels, high-tech industry, income, and housing values.
Unfortunately, this research has been done for the U.S. only and no data is available for Canadian cities. But I think that in order to progress, I would have to determine:
On top of being a fascinating read, Florida’s book made me realize so many things about myself. A lot of times I felt he was talking about me! This has led me to think about who I am and what I need to evolve as a person.
Let me know if you think of other areas I should explore based on Florida’s work. As usual, suggestions and comments are very welcome!
Vancouver, who are you? Credits: Flickr user s.yume. The caption for this picture reads: "A beautiful view of beautiful Vancouver BC from the seawall in Stanley Park. Vancouver is an amazingly idyllic place to be, beautiful all year round. How many times have I said beautiful? It really is my favorite city on Earth, I can't think of any place I'd rather live."
Dear readers,
I really tried to love Vancouver. I will not spend a great deal of time trying to convince you that I did, but I really did. The fact is, five months after moving here, I’m a shadow of my old self. I will not spend a great deal of time trying to explain to you what happened, all you need to know is that the city had a pretty hard way of showing me our personalities don’t match. I can’t wait to get the hell out.
I hold Vancouver personnally responsible for all of this. You see, I’m an over-confident, stubborn twentysomething French girl. I refuse to believe that one can go in a few months from “hyper-active young graduate about to conquer the world” to “I feel like I’m dying inside.” Especially when each time you leave the city, be it for one day, you suddenly get all jumpy and annoyingly energetic again.
I know this sounds weird, but think about it for a minute. If you’re Canadian, you know that anyone who’s spent some time in Vancouver either loves it or hates it. Loves it like “I’ve visited 30 countries and I wouldn’t live anywhere else,” hates it like “this place has no soul and is truly depressing.” Actually, Canadians have pretty strong feelings about every major city in the country. “Toronto totally sucks.” “Montreal is just sooooo awesooome.” There doesn’t seem to be any middle ground.
Now the people who hate Vancouver usually have a hard time explaining why it is so. Of course there’s the rain, lack of cultural events and nightlife, unappealing architecture, etc. But then they always end up adding something like “there’s just something to it.” Or, “it’s the vibe, I don’t dig it.” And eventually they conclude with “I don’t know what it is, but it’s just depressing.”
I’ve been trying to convince myself that maaaaybe the summer will reveal the city’s hidden treasures, feeling guilty to not be content with what I have. But the truth is, my mind was made up after a few days only. I remember the first time I walked on Commercial Drive. It didn’t take long before I thought “I don’t know what it is, but this street has something weird to it.” I didn’t feel comfortable at all. Nowhere in the city did I have the same sense of wonderment that Montreal elicited in me.
Where did that feeling come from? What is that “thing” about Vancouver that nobody seems to be able to explain? What happens in the brief moment during which we discover a new place that makes us decide whether we’re comfortable or not? I won’t take “gut feeling” for an answer. I shall discover what happens in our brain when we visit a city for the first time, how cities and places can affect our personality, and why we love or hate our cities so passionately. This will be an exciting trip into the fields of environmental psychology, urban sociology, psychogeography and more.
I’ve also decided to regularly give an account of the state of my research in this blog. Posts will be classified in the category “research.” You are encouraged to participate by submitting your ideas and hypotheses as well as by giving your opinion and advice.
Wish me well!
Flavie
