ABSTRACT

Wide eyes, a face of surprise, hesitantly asking: “why here?” This is a typical reaction to new international students who come to study in the central agricultural region of the U.S. Stereotypical images have made the central U.S. to be perceived as merely “flyover states” to many people, and surprising destinations when chosen for study, relocation, or even travel. For many who are from rural flyover country communities, finding better job opportunities and more diverse options for living have been convincing enough to move elsewhere, causing considerable population decline. This paper investigates the concept of place attachment in the State of Kansas, USA and shows that despite individuals’ emotional bonds to certain aspects of their state, most notably the communal aspect, most intend to leave to seek opportunities elsewhere. This study unfolds community attachment factors to an agricultural region and also identifies the types of attachment people have with it. 

摘要

睁大眼睛，一脸惊讶，迟疑地问：“怎么会在这里？” 这是对来美国中部农业区学习的新国际学生的典型反应 刻板印象使美国中部被许多人视为仅仅是“立交桥州”，并且在选择学习、搬迁时令人惊讶的目的地，甚至旅行。对于许多来自农村天桥乡村社区的人来说，找到更好的工作机会和更多样化的生活选择已经足以令人信服地搬到别处，导致人口大幅下降。本文调查了美国堪萨斯州的地方依恋概念，并表明尽管个人与其所在州的某些方面（尤其是公共方面）有情感联系，但大多数人仍打算离开去其他地方寻求机会。