Quantitative and Qualitative Data

• Census Data

  Census data is socio-economic data which looks at the economic makeup of the population by looking at factors such as general health, income and careers. It is collected by people having to fill in a compulsory form and this takes place every 10 years
• Geospatial data

  any data presented on a map e.g. IMD maps, Crime data maps and ArcGIS maps
• Interviews

  Interviews can generate detailed insights about a person’s sense of place or perception of a place. They have direct reports of experiences, opinions and feelings. Interviews can be structured or unstructured (which can bring more flexible answers gathering more in depth qualitative data). A disadvantage of using interviews is that there can be interview bias where the interviewer could end up asking leading questions.
• Media Representation of a place

  Media including television, film, photography, art, books, newspapers and the internet. These reach a larger global audience which shapes the wider perceptions of place.
• Photographs

  Photographs can be edited to make them appear different and more attractive. The difference between a photograph and reality can be down to weather but with advanced technology people are increasingly editing photographs to improve the image or perception of that place. They can also be selective in what they show.

  E.g.Toshogu Shrine in Japan. Set in a beautiful forest and is famed for its ornate architecture. Is empty in the advertising picture but in reality there are many tourists there.
• Music

  Different genres can evoke a sense of place and can be linked to a specific geographical area such as reggae in Jamaica. Parodies can also be made such as A Welsh version of Empire State of Mind by Alecia Keys was created in 2010 for Newport in Wales. Instead of playing a piano in Times Square New York Wainwright plays a battered synthesiser.
• Television and Film

  TV shows and films can play a significant role in representing a place and this can be both positive and negative. On a national scale TV shows can attract tourists such as the 2015 television dramatisation of the Poldark novels that had a positive impact on the Cornish tourist trade as viewers, inspired by the shots of the coastline flocked to the Visit Cornwall after the first episode and caused the website views to increase by 65%. Also rightmove reported that house-hunting enquiries more than doubled. On a global scale, The Lord of the Rings film trilogy has become synonymous with New Zealand and tourist numbers are 50% higher than they were prior to the release of the first film in 2001. And in 2012 Tourism New Zealand reported that Lord of the Rings contributed NZD$33 million a year to the New Zealand tourist economy.
• Art

  Art has long been used to represent place. Painters become synonymous with Geographical places such as Gainsborough and Constable are known for their landscapes of Suffolk. These paintings made the countryside look idyllic whereas this was not the case for many people living in the countryside at the time. Paintings may be considered less reliable than photographs because there is more scope for individual interpretation and selection. However, they can also show a deeper understanding of a place because they allow the painter to show more of the character of what is there.
• Graffiti

  Graffiti has traditionally been associated with youth cultures claiming ownership of a place but the famous UK graffiti artist Banksy argues that the importance of graffiti is also to give a voice to people who aren’t normally heard in the mainstream. Many consider graffiti as a type of vandalism and authorities are keen to remove it from public areas. Increasingly, however, graffiti is being accepted into mainstream culture and art galleries may now stock graffiti images. In these places, grafficin is seen not as being ‘out of place’ but as something which can be bought and sold. It is also used as a type of street art in the regeneration of places.
• Example of Graffiti and regeneration

  E.g. Dismaland, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset - In 2015 Banksy’s Dismaland featured artworks on themes including the apocalypse, anti-consumerism and celebrity culture is on a derelict seafront lido and billed as a ‘bemusement park’. It is estimated that an additional 150,000 people visited the town as a result of the attraction and they added £20 million to the local economy helping benefit the resort which had declined in previous decades. 
• Place and Architecture

  Architects are responsible for planning places and this planning is seen as increasingly important in terms of creating sustainable and healthy places. Architecture can also play a pivotal role in the redevelopment and rebranding of a place. Some redevelopment schemes utilise the existing style or heritage of buildings in an area but others involve more radical changes as part of the rebranding process. E.g. Granary Wharf in Leeds kept the original style of buildings but BridgeWater places a new skyscraper.