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2013 年 09 月 PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY Sep., 2013
超越地理学二元性:混合地理学的思考
关美宝
(伊利诺州大学厄巴纳—香槟分校地理及地理信息科学系,
厄巴纳,伊利诺伊州 61801-3637,
美国)
摘 要:20 世纪的地理学经历了“空间—分析”地理学和“社会—文化”地理学的分裂,对学科的发展带来了持久的
影响。本文从历史角度探究“空间—分析”地理学和“社会—文化”地理学分裂的原因,提出保持地理学观点的多
样性、促进不同领域的沟通是地理学学科发展的理性选择。在实现“空间—分析”地理学与“社会—文化”地理学
沟通的方式方面,地理学认识论与研究方法之间并不存在一一对应的关系,定量方法与定性方法可以在不同领域
中混合使用,从而实现对社会—理论与空间—分析隔阂的超越。本文阐释了“混合性”的理念在超越地理学社会
—文化/空间—分析二元性中所具备的潜质,并简要总结了混合地理学已有的研究实践,对以“混合性”为基础、面
向
“后社会—理论、后空间—分析”的地理学未来进行了展望。
关 键 词:社会—文化地理学;空间—分析地理学;混合地理学
doi: 10.11820/dlkxjz.2013.09.001
1 引言 裂 ① ,发生在人们尝试建立一种脱离实体的地理分
析模式的过程之中,试图将空间模式和空间关系与
20 世纪的地理学在诸多思潮的争鸣中经历了 社 会 、文 化 、政 治 过 程 相 分 离 (Sack, 1974; Soja,
蓬勃的发展。各种理论视角在不同时期相继涌现、 1980; Gregory, 1981; Sayer, 1985; Rose, 1993;
此消彼长,但其过程往往伴随着尖刻的批判,特别 Brown, 1995)。
是有关地理学学科性质的讨论往往会蜕化成顽固 这次分裂以及后续的来自各种批判理论(例如
的对立话语(Martin, 1989)。在这一过程中,地理学 马克思主义、人本主义、女性主义、后结构主义、后
家越来越多地被划归不同的学科传统或领域,而这 殖民主义等)的质疑,使得“社会—文化”与“空间—
些学科传统或领域通常被视为互不相容甚至是完 分析”愈发被理解或表述为地理学不相容的两个领
全冲突的。 域(Gould, 1994, 1999),人文地理学家分化为社会理
在此背景下,20 世纪的地理学至少经历了两次 论家和后现代学者,以及空间分析学者、定量研究
大的分裂,并对学科产生了持久的影响:一次是自 者和地理信息科学学者两大分支。尽管批判社会
然地理学与人文地理学的分裂,起源于地理学中的 理论和计量方法已经被当代地理学广泛接受,但在
“自然”与“社会”的本体论分离(FitzSimmons, 1989; “社会—理论”与“空间—分析”传统之间建立联系
Hanson, 1999; Massey, 1999, 2001);另一次是“社会 却比大多数人想象的更加困难。虽然不少学者关
—文化”地理学(social-cultural geographies)与“空间 注地理学内部社会—理论与空间—分析之间的分
—分析”地理学(spatial-analytical geographies)的分 裂,并且开始思考一些其他的选择,或者强调计量
收稿日期:2013-07;修订日期:
2013-08.
基金项目:国家自然科学基金项目(41228001)。
作者简介:关美宝(Mei-Po Kwan),美国加州大学圣巴巴拉分校地理学博士,美国伊利诺州大学厄巴纳—香槟分校地理及地理
信息科学系教授,
《美国地理学家协会会刊》(Annals of the Association of American Geographers)主编、SAGE 地理信
息科学和技术进展系列丛书主编、
《交通地理期刊》(Journal of Transport Geography)编委,主要从事地理信息科学、
健康地理、城市地理、交通地理、社会与行为地理等研究。E-mail: mpk654@gmail.com
① 本文中的“社会—文化地理学”是指强调场所、人的经历、社会生活的质性理解的批判性和诠释性视角;
“空间—分析地理
学”是指采用定量和 GIS 方法分析空间模式与过程的视角。这一分类方式没有考虑地理学科“内部”的分歧(比如社会—文
化地理学中的人本主义和历史唯物主义),参考 Kobayashi 等(1989)。
1307-1315 页
1308 地 理 科 学 进 展 32 卷
② 例如,Schaefer(1953)曾阐述
“空间关系是地理学唯一重要的议题”
。
③ 例如,Gould(1979)将地理学“计量革命”比作“奥革阿斯时期(Augean Period)”,比喻对 20 世纪早期的传统区域地理学的纯
化、清理过程。
④ 例如大卫·哈维的《地理学中的解释》(Harvey, 1969)。
⑤ 需要强调的是,对地理学产生影响的是地理学家对库恩研究的理解和运用,而不是库恩的研究本身。请参考 Mair(1986)
关于库恩的研究如何在地理学中被误读或误用的讨论——特别是关于科学变化的主观性与劝说性,以及作为“行为准则”
而非哲学与理论的规范表述的库恩范式的理论。
9期 关美宝:超越地理学二元性:混合地理学的思考 1309
⑥ 参考 Driver(2001)和 Marino(2002)关于地理学人文传统的地位提升的论述。
⑦ 空间—分析传统的地理学家对于科学以及定量方法与实证主义的关系上有不同的观点(Taaffe, 1993)。例如,
《地理分析》
(Geographical Analysis)期刊的四位前任编辑——迈克尔·古德柴尔德(Goodchild, 1995, 1999)、埃米里奥·卡塞蒂(Casetti,
1999)、威廉·克拉克(Clark, 1999)和雷吉纳德·戈里奇(Golledge, 1999)——的观点之间存在显著差异。卡塞蒂(Casetti,
1999)的论述特别有趣:
“我们需要记住:那些反对科学及其主张、角色、有效性与影响的声音会引出一些话题和主题,这些
话题和主题需要被强调,以重新定义科学、改善科学。”
1310 地 理 科 学 进 展 32 卷
⑧ 参考 Rose(1995)和 Mitchell(1997)对于这一概念的批判性的评价。需要注意的是,由于人文地理学内部的根本差异或不兼
容性可能难以完全消弭,因此“混合化”在人文地理学中作用有限。另外,除了混合性以外,还有其他可能有效的策略,例
如,珍妮弗·沃尔什(Wolch, 2003)的“极端性开放(radical openness)”的概念既没有提出“大综合”的目标,也没有倡导单一视
角的主宰或方法的演替。
⑨ 混合性的概念在某种程度上与隋殿志(Sui, 2004)曾讨论的“第三文化”的概念相似。他认为,
“第三文化”是指“艺术和科学
中的创新理念的协同与相互影响”。读者也可以参考 Gilbert(1995)和 Woodward(2001)关于跨越科学与艺术边界的论述。
9期 关美宝:超越地理学二元性:混合地理学的思考 1311
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9期 关美宝:超越地理学二元性:混合地理学的思考 1313
KWAN Mei-Po
(Department of Geography and Geographic Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC),
Urbana, IL 61801-3637, USA)
Abstract: In the last century, geography as a discipline has witnessed a rift between spatial-analytical geogra-
phies and social-cultural geographies, resulting in lasting effect on the discipline. In this article, I explore how
the social-theory/spatial-analysis split in geography arose. I argue that, instead of insisting on a unitary identity
for the discipline, forging productive relations between different traditions, specialties and subfields seems to be
a more viable strategy for enhancing the status of geography. I consider some possibilities for reconnecting so-
cial-cultural and spatial-analytical geographies by revisiting the relations between epistemology and method in
geography. I suggest that there can be both positivist and non-positivist use of quantitative/GIS-based spatial
analysis and qualitative methods, which makes the mixed-use of the two methods possible. Then I examine the
notion of hybridity and its potential for redressing this polarizing tendency in the discipline, and summarize the
existing practice of hybrid geographies. There are at least three common practices towards hybrid geographies.
The most common hybrid practices are those that use quantitative or GIS methods to address issues informed by
critical geographies. Another type seeks to cross the boundary between geo-spatial technologies and a qualitative
understanding of the lived experiences of individuals in various cultural contexts. And the third type attempts to
integrate critical social theory and spatial analytical methods. As a conclusion, I offer some thoughts on the pos-
sibility of a "post-social-theory, post-spatial-analysis" future for geography. This means a future in which so-
cial-cultural geographies and spatial-analytical geographies are no longer represented as the conflicting poles.
And I point out that the major challenge for geography as a discipline is how to cherish the diversity and rich-
ness of perspectives while enhancing its status in the academic community and society.
Key words: social-cultural geographies; spatial-analytical geographies; hybrid geographies