融入生命历程理论、面向长期空间行为的时间地理学再思考

时间地理学是一种表现并解释时空间过程中人类空间行为与客观制约之间关系的方法论。但是大多数的实证研究仅限于日常行为,长期空间行为研究存在不足。本文通过制约与能动性、行为的长期性、时空间意义等关键命题的再思考,提出可以统合时间地理学和生命历程理论对个体行为进行理解。生命历程理论作为关注个人生命历程和社会变迁互动关系的社会学理论,能够有效地补充时间地理学在社会过程分析中的不足。通过比较二者的异同,本文提出以生命历程理论的生命轨迹和时间地理学的生命路径为基础,重新构建长期空间行为生命路径,整合社会心理因素、多重社会角色、多维社会时间,以实现对于个体生命历程的全面理解。

RETHINKING TIME-GEOGRAPHY IN LONG-TERM SPACE-TIME BEHAVIOR STUDY: INTEGRATING WITH LIFE COURSE THEORY

Time-geographical approach, constructed by Swedish geographer, Torsten H?gerstrand and the Lund School in 1970s, was a constraint-based approach to human activity. It provided a powerful conceptual framework to understand constraints on human activity participation in space and time. However, most empirical studies based on time-geographical perspectives were only focused on the short-term space-time behaviors of everyday life, except for H?gerstrand's early work on migration behaviors in 1940s, and several GIS-based time-geographical geovisualization of migration pattern since the late 1990s. This paper was aimed to bridge these intelligent gaps by constructing a new conceptual framework integrating time-geography with the life course theory for a better understanding of long-term space-time behaviors. Life course theory, a sociological approach established in 1960s, focused on the relationship of individual life course and social change. It provided an essential framework for understanding individual's life course as the result of social forces and social structures. In this paper, we compared these two approaches in terms of how they understand individual behavior, time and space, as well as constraints. We concluded that life course approach supplement time-geography with an in-depth understanding of the social context of individual's long-term space-time behavior and of time accumulation effect of past and future behavior. We re-conceptualize the notation of life-path by integrating individual's life events with their emotions and feelings as well as other social and psychological factors.