Abstracts Geography

A behavioral consideration of spatial interaction

by Robert Eric Borgstrom

Suggested as an alternative to the traditional normative methodology for the understanding and prediction of discretionary travel is the concept of individual and group influenced perceptions of movement space. The normative approach has long emphasized the importance of precisely measured physical, temporal and economic distance as the determinants of spatial interaction. Considering behaviorally those "determinants??? of travel, it is evident that miles, dollars, and hours are incorrectly perceived and that such errors in judgment may be a function of particular life styles. Possibly of greater relevance to the understanding of travel systems is the notion of socio-cultural distance; the idea that group influences direct the manner in which people perceive the social accessibility or desirability of particular destinations. The system of air travel between the mainland United States and Hawaii is chosen as an appropriate network from which examples of these concepts are drawn. Extending these considerations, a model is proposed whereby subjective responses regarding the accessibility and desirability of a place are used to locate places within movement space. This artificial placement divorces the perception of accessibility from traditional considerations of distance. The marketing implications of identifying such propensities to travel are obvious and guidelines for future behavioral research into transportation are suggested.