Place Attachment at a Buddhist Temple in Wisconsin: An Affective, Behavioral, and Cognitive Process

Hassnaa Mohammad (University of Wisconsin-Madison)

The purpose of the study is to understand how spatial and architectural characteristics influence place attachment of members of a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery. The 13-acres site is located in a natural setting amidst rolling hills and fields in south Wisconsin. It has six buildings, thereof two temples; an original temple built in 1981 and a newer one built in 2008. The original temple was erected to host the first Kalachakra initiation given by the Dalai Lama outside of Asia, which makes the temple a significant sacred site for Tibetan Buddhists. The new temple is one of the only monasteries in the Midwest designed to mimic Tibetan style temples.

Applying Scannell & Gifford’s Tripartite Model of place attachment, the study aims to understand the process through which attendees who share a religious background emotionally, cognitively, and behaviorally engage with the architecture of the temple, forming place attachment. Data was collected through an electronic questionnaire distributed to members of the monastery and follow-up in-depth interviews with staff and permeant attendees to further investigate about possible relationships. On-site spatial and factor analyses were carried out before collecting perceptual data.

The results confirm Scanell & Gifford theory that defines place attachment as an affective, cognitive, and behavioral process that occurs between people and a place. Cognitive experiences such as shared historical and religious events and memories of temple attendees highly contribute to place attachment. Findings also suggest that physical and religious architectural symbols induce feelings of peacefulness, mindfulness, and spirituality when present in the temple. Finally, social and religious building symbols influence attendees behavior, as they ensure to maintain closeness and preference to worship at the temple compared to other places.