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Therapeutic micro-environments in the Edgelands: A thematic analysis of Richard Mabey's The Unofficial Countryside

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  • Houghton, Frank
  • Houghton, Sharon

Abstract

The concept of therapeutic landscapes, as introduced by Gesler, has had a significant impact on what has become a reformed geography (or geographies) of health. Research in this field has developed the number and type of sites that have been characterised as therapeutic landscapes. A wide range of environments have now been explored through the analytical lens of the ‘therapeutic landscape’. This research further expands current descriptions of such environments by exploring Edgelands as therapeutic micro landscapes. Edgelands refer to the neglected and routinely ignored interfacial zone between urban and rural that are a routine characteristic of the urban fringe resulting from dynamic cycles of urban development and decay. Using a hybrid method of thematic analysis incorporating both inductive and deductive approaches, this research explores Richard Mabey's seminal work on this topic, The Unofficial Countryside. Previous examinations of the features of therapeutic environments are therefore scrutinised to explore both scale and the possibility of further extending the kind of environments that may be described as therapeutic to include Edgelands. This approach is informed, in part, by principles of mindfulness, a historically Eastern, but increasingly Western approach to exploring oneself and the environment.

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  • Houghton, Frank & Houghton, Sharon, 2015. "Therapeutic micro-environments in the Edgelands: A thematic analysis of Richard Mabey's The Unofficial Countryside," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 280-286.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:133:y:2015:i:c:p:280-286
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.11.040
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    4. Bell, Sarah L. & Foley, Ronan & Houghton, Frank & Maddrell, Avril & Williams, Allison M., 2018. "From therapeutic landscapes to healthy spaces, places and practices: A scoping review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 123-130.

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