The Cultural Landscape Analysis of the Domain-Centered Place-Based Community of Ave Maria, Florida

• Other Authors: Huff, Brad (authoraut)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Geography
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/FSU_migr_etd-5366

My study explores the role of geography in the construction of cultural identity for place-based communities of practice. I combine recent advances in cultural geography, which focus on the role of cultural traces to culturally order and geographically border a place with recent research on communities of practice, which are communities characterized by a domain focus, an interpretive tradition, and a day-to-day practice. I demonstrate this by exploring the newly constructed town of Ave Maria in the US state of Florida, a community whose domain focus is the day-to-day practice of conservative Catholicism. The study uses a qualitative research methodology to determine the features of the town's landscape that promote the community's domain focus. It uses a quantitative research methodology to investigate the contributions that the spatial configuration of those features makes to the community's cultural identity. An ontology and knowledge base provide a systematic formalization of my qualitative data for subsequent use in quantitative analysis. My results indicate that the cultural ordering and geographical bordering of the community promote a high degree of homogeneity among residents along the community's domain axis. I also conclude with the finding that the community has developed a cultural district whose spatial configuration and location play important roles in the day-to-day lives of its residents. === A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Geography in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. === Fall Semester, 2012. === July 10, 2012. === communities of practice, cultural geography, cultural identity, cultural traces, landscape analysis, spatial configuration === Includes bibliographical references. === Jon Anthony Stallins, Professor Co-Directing Dissertation; Victor Mesev, Professor Co-Directing Dissertation; Karen L. Laughlin, University Representative; Mark W. Horner, Committee Member; James B. Elsner, Committee Member.