text: The Role of Neighbourhood Attachment in People Transactions with Local Flood Risk | International Association for People-Environment Studies
  Past research suggests that Place Attachment (PA) is relevant in regulating people-environment transactions across a number of environmental-psychological processes, such as perception, concern, attitudes, intentions, behaviours (e.g., Giuliani, 2003; Speller, 2000). However, a more specific and relevant environmental issue such as environmental risk lacks empirical studies assessing the role of PA on environmental risk perception, concern, attitudes, intentions, behaviours (with very few recent exceptions about flood risk, e.g., Twigger-Ross, Whittle and Medd 2010). These few previous studies have shown the positive main effect of PA (precisely genealogical and economic vs. religious PA) on flood risk preparedness (Mishra, Mazumdar, Damodar, 2010); or the positive main effect of Neighbourhood Attachment (NA) – PA to one's own residential neighbourhood – on Flood Risk Perception (FRP) and concern; as well as (especially in areas of low risk) on attitudes toward flood coping behaviours, intentions to engage in flood coping behaviours, and self-reported flood coping behaviours (i.e., prevention behaviours and/or action to take/avoid in case of flood – Bonaiuto, De Dominicis, Fornara, Ganucci Cancellieri, Mosco, 2011).The main goal of this research is to develop the empirical knowledge about the role of NA on psychological pattern related to flood risk (i.e., perception, concern, attitudes, intentions and behaviours). On the basis of previous findings – general, on PA, and specific, on NA in flood risk context – the main hypothesis is that higher Objective Flood Risk (OFR) is related to higher FRP, concern, attitudes, intentions and coping behaviours, especially for the more attached inhabitants.Two Italian survey studies carried out in two different cities (N1=236 – Rome; N2= 230 – Vibo Valentia, south Italy) are presented here. The two areas were chosen after a preliminary qualitative analysis of Authorities' knowledge and responsibilities, and after a quantitative preliminary study aiming at understanding citizens' flood knowledge systems and flood experiences. The two studies used a purposive sampling procedure in order to include those citizens in flood risk areas who experienced flooding in the past. Three sub-areas (and three sub-samples), subjected to three different level of flood risk (no risk vs. low risk vs. high risk neighbourhood), were selected within each case study, in order to improve case studies comparability. Shifting from the neighbourhood to the city level, we considered Rome (Study 1) as a low risk city and Vibo Valentia (Study 2) as a high risk city.Multivariate analyses and structural equation models were used to assess the hypothesised moderating role of NA in the relationship between OFR and, respectively, FRP, concern, attitudes, intentions, and coping behaviours. Results are discussed within the framework of the general positive effects that PA can exert on inhabitants' transactions with their own environment.