Identity, social interaction, and networks in the region of Wisconsin’s Holyland

ABSTRACT

This paper focuses on how a sense of identity, social interaction, and networks contribute to the construction and maintenance of regions. Using Wisconsin’s Holyland as a case study, we conducted fieldwork, collected primary data from residents through a survey, and utilized social network analysis (SNA) to determine how it is defined as a vernacular and functional region. While there appeared to be consensus regarding the key defining characteristics of Wisconsin’s Holyland on the surface, our data analysis revealed contrasting perceptions and definitions of the region. In addition, a SNA of self-reported social interactions by residents highlighted a complex cultural geography through the appearance of subregions and expanded borders of the region overall.

KEYWORDS:

• Regional identity
• borders
• social interaction
• social network analysis

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the residents of Wisconsin's Holyland for participating in this project and appreciate the constructive feedback from the reviewers and editor of this journal.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributors

M. Beth Schlemper (PhD Geography, UW-Madison, 2003) is an associate professor in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Toledo. Her teaching is in the area of human geography, research methods, and geography education. Dr. Schlemper’s research focus is in geography education and historical geography. She was recently the PI of a NSF grant related to advancing geospatial thinking and technologies in grades 9–12 (NSF Award No.: DRL-1433574).

Kimberly A. Panozzo is a PhD student and research assistant in the Spatially Integrated Social Science program at the University of Toledo. Her current work includes utilizing Remote Sensing and GIS modeling to identify agricultural changes and issues. Her research centers around the application of geospatial computational methods and the incorporation of big data.

ORCID

M. Beth Schlemper http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4678-0458

Notes

1 The name of the region appears in some sources as “Holy Land,” but it is indicated more often as one word “Holyland.”

2 A detailed examination of the settlement process and the key forces that shaped the region can be found in Schlemper’s “The Regional Construction of Identity and Scale in Wisconsin’s Holyland” (Schlemper 2004).

3 To ensure anonymity, survey respondents are represented by numbers rather than by any signifiers that could reveal their identities.

Additional information

Funding

This project was supported by the University of Toledo through a grant from the University Research Awards and Fellowship Program.