Transgenerational place attachment in a New Zealand seaside destination

Abstract

Drawing on interviews with 84 residents in Raglan, New Zealand, the study examines the impact of tourism on the lives of those residents. It uses a cross-generational analysis of attachment of place across three classifications of residents – those born in the town, those who left and returned, and those with no prior connection before taking up residency. Findings indicate that despite the change and uncertainty exacerbated by tourism development experienced in daily life, different generations of residents share a sense of “emotional home” towards the place and its community. The study is based on thematic analysis aided by the use of narrative interpretation and co-occurrence measures to describe differences and similarities between the generations.