Place Attachment Evaluated Through the Lens of Time: How Evaluation of Place in the Past, Present, and Future Affects Place Attachment Along the Belgian Coast

Research has shown that people’s evaluation of a place is positively associated with place attachment. Yet it remains unclear how changes in evaluation over time influence place attachment. We used hierarchical regression to examine how people’s evaluations of the Belgian coast over time relate to their attachment, using online survey data from 752 tourists and 412 residents. The results showed that place attachment is most strongly and positively associated with the present evaluation of a place. In addition, the better individuals evaluated the place in the past (compared to the present), the higher their attachment. Likewise, the more positive individuals evaluate the place in the future (compared to the present), the higher their attachment. Moreover, residents’ place attachment was more strongly linked to past evaluations, whereas tourists’ place attachment was more strongly linked to future evaluations. Potential implications for facilitating the implementation of sustainable (coastal) transitions are discussed.