Place Attachment Dynamics, Settlement Characteristics, and Residential Satisfaction in Post-Relocation Bajo Community: A Comparative Study of Government-Assisted Housing and Self-Help Housing in Mekar Village and Bajo Indah Village, Konawe Regency, Southeast Sulawesi

International Journal of Civil Engineering
© 2025 by SSRG - IJCE Journal
Volume 12 Issue 9
Year of Publication : 2025
Authors : Muhammad Nuh Arifiandi Hadiputra, Idawarni Asmal, Nurul Jamala, Syarif Beddu
pdf
How to Cite?

Muhammad Nuh Arifiandi Hadiputra, Idawarni Asmal, Nurul Jamala, Syarif Beddu, "Place Attachment Dynamics, Settlement Characteristics, and Residential Satisfaction in Post-Relocation Bajo Community: A Comparative Study of Government-Assisted Housing and Self-Help Housing in Mekar Village and Bajo Indah Village, Konawe Regency, Southeast Sulawesi," SSRG International Journal of Civil Engineering, vol. 12,  no. 9, pp. 113-119, 2025. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I9P110

Abstract:

Settlement relocation of Bajo people is a common adaptive strategy applied to respond to environmental degradation, development pressures, and sustainability vulnerabilities. However, its implementation often ignores the affective and sociocultural aspects of local communities, especially in the context of coastal communities such as the Bajo tribe. This study examines the relationship between settlement characteristics, place attachment, and Satisfaction with living in two relocation schemes: government-assisted Housing and self-help housing. With a comparative-quantitative approach, the study involved 140 respondents (n = 70 per location) and used the Pearson correlation test to analyze the strength of the relationship between variables. The results of the analysis showed that in government-assisted Housing built on the sea, there was a positive and significant correlation between settlement characteristics and Satisfaction with living in (r = 0.394; p < 0.001). In contrast, in government-assisted Housing located on land, a negative and significant correlation was found between place attachment and Satisfaction with living in (r = –0.316; p = 0.008). These findings indicate that the dynamics of place attachment are not universal, but are highly dependent on the spatial configuration and origin of the relocation. Therefore, relocation planning must holistically consider affective, spatial, and social dimensions to achieve post-relocation sustainability.

Keywords:

Place attachment, Coastal relocation, Bajo, Satisfaction, Settlement characteristics.

References:

[1] Robin Bronen, and F. Stuart Chapin, “Adaptive Governance and Institutional Strategies for Climate Induced Community Relocations in Alaska,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 110, no. 23, pp. 9320 9325, 2013. [CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[2] Robert Gifford, “Environmental Psychology Matters,” Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 65, pp. 541 579, 2014.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[3] Maria Lewicka, “Place Attachment: How Far have we Come in the Last 40 Years?,” Journal of Environmental Psychology, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 207 230, 2011.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[4] Yi Fu Tuan, Humanistic Geography, 1st ed., Theory and Methods, pp. 1 12, 2017.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[5] Natalie Marie Gulsrud, Kelly Hertzog, and Ian Shears, “Innovative Urban Forestry Governance in Melbourne?: Investigating “Green Placemaking” As a Nature Based Solution,” Environmental Research, vol. 161, pp. 158 167, 2018.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[6] Amos Rapoport, House Form and Culture, Prentice Hall, pp. 1 146, 1989.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[7] Norsidah Ujang, Marek Kozlowski, and Suhardi Maulan, “Linking Place Attachment and Social Interaction: Towards Meaningful Public Places,” Journal of Place Management and Development, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 115 129, 2018.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[8] Ian McNiven, “Saltwater People: Spiritscapes, Maritime Rituals and the Archaeology of Australian Indigenous Seascapes,” World Archaeol, vol. 35, no. 3, pp. 329 349, 2004.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[9] Anthony P. Cohen, Symbolic Construction of Community, 1st ed., Routledge, pp. 1 128, 2013.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[10] J.W. Berry, “Acculturation and Adaptation in a New Society,” International Migration, vol. 30, no. s1, pp. 69 85, 1992.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[11] Thayer Scudder, and Elizabeth Colson, From Welfare to Development: A Conceptual Framework for the Analysis of Dislocated People, Involuntary Migration and Resettlement, 1st ed., Taylor & Francis, pp. 1 21, 1982.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[12] Mark Pelling, Karen O’Brien, and David Matyas, “Adaptation and Transformation,” Climate Change, vol. 133, pp. 113 127, 2015.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[13] Jing Fu, Jialu Zhou, and Yunyuan Deng, “Heritage Values of Ancient Vernacular Residences in Traditional Villages in Western Hunan, China: Spatial Patterns and Influencing Factors,” Building and Environment, vol. 188, 2021.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[14] Tim Ingold, The Perception of the Environment: Essays on Livelihood, Dwelling and Skill, Routledge, pp. 1 465, 2000.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[15] Ting Yang, and Chunlan Du, “Plant Landscape Characteristics of Mountain Traditional Villages Under Cultural Ecology: A Case Study of Pilin Village,” Scientific Reports, vol. 15, pp. 1 13, 2025.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[16] Xiaohua Chen, Wanzhen Xie, and Hongbo Li, “The Spatial Evolution Process, Characteristics and Driving Factors of Traditional Villages from the Perspective of the Cultural Ecosystem: A Case Study of Chengkan Village,” Habitat International, vol. 104, 2020.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[17] Geoff A. Wilson et al., “Social Memory and the Resilience of Communities Affected by Land Degradation,” Land Degradation & Development, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 383 400, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[18] Yiheyis Taddele Maru et al., “A Linked Vulnerability and Resilience Framework for Adaptation Pathways in Remote Disadvantaged Communities,” Global Environmental Change, vol. 28, pp. 337 350, 2014.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[19] Elisabeth Huber Sannwald et al., “Navigating Challenges and Opportunities of Land Degradation and Sustainable Livelihood Development in Dryland Social Ecological Systems: A Case Study from MEXICO,” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 367, no. 1606, pp. 3158 3177, 2012.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[20] James D. Ford et al., “The Resilience of Indigenous Peoples to Environmental Change,” One Earth, vol. 2, no. 6, pp. 532 543, 2020.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[21] Binti Nafi'ah, “Relocations Conflict of Community Settlements Affected by Nyia Airport Construction,” Thesis, Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University, 2019.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[22] Anisa Puspa Rani et al., “Hambatan Adaptasi Mata Pencarian Kelompok Rentan Dalam Relokasi Masyarakat Pesisir KEK Mandalika,” RECIPROCAL: Journal of Current Progressive Sociological Research, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 207 220, 2024.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[23] Westi Utami, Yuli Ardianto Wibowo, and Muhamad Afiq, “Spatial Analysis of Relocation Locations for Communities Affected by the 2018 Banten Strait Tsunami,” Bhumi: Journal of Agrarian and Land Affairs, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 112 128, 2019.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[24] Miyuki Hino, Christopher B. Field, and Katharine J. Mach, “Managed Retreat as a Response to Natural Hazard Risk,” Nature Climate Change, vol. 7, pp. 364 370, 2017.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[25] Harri A. Setiadi, “Analysis of Factors Influencing the Satisfaction of Rental Apartment Occupants: A Case Study of Kemayoran Rental Apartments,” Settlement Journal, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 19 36, 2015.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[26] Faridah Faridah, and Asnawi Manaf, “The Relationship between Socioeconomic Characteristics and the Level of Residential Satisfaction of Simple Homeowners in the Tamansari Bukit Mutiara Housing Complex, Balikpapan City,” Journal of Regional and Urban Development, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 33 42, 2014.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[27] Eny Setyaningsih, “Study of the Relationship between Consumer Characteristics and Ownership of Housing Types (Case Study of Housing Consumers in Karanganyar District),” Thesis, Eleventh March University, pp. 1 67, 2009.
[Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[28] Amrullah Maraining, Ramli Dollah, and Zaini Othman, “Indonesian Informal Workers in Sabah,” Harmony In Diversity: Building ASEAN Community, pp. 663 680, 2015.
[Google Scholar]
[29] Lynne C. Manzo, and Douglas D. Perkins, “Finding Common Ground: The Importance of Place Attachment to Community Participation and Planning,” Journal of Planning Literature, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 335 350, 2006.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]
[30] David Burley et al., “Place Attachment and Environmental Change in Coastal Louisiana,” Organization & Environment, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 347 366, 2007.
[CrossRef] [Google Scholar] [Publisher Link]