Sireena Ward, Dahlia Durga and David Caiceto
📃• URC22 Abstract •
Published: May 16, 2022 • Book of Abstracts (Forthcoming) of the 4th Undergraduate Research Conference. University of Guyana, Office for Undergraduate Research.
Sireena Ward ✉️ Dahlia Durga Department of Architecture. Faculty of Engineering and Technology. University of Guyana-Turkeyen Campus. Greater Georgetown, Guyana.
David Caiceto Department of Psychology. Borough of Manhattan Community College. City University of New York. New York, NY.
In various communities across Guyana, Guyanese have expressed their frustration with the presence of abandoned buildings in their area. Residential abandoned buildings negatively impact the target area, and in the view of Linden residents, nothing is being done to combat the issue as such this proposal’s research topic is concerned with the psychological impact of residential abandoned buildings on residents of Christianburg, Linden. This research aims to find out conditions necessary for abandoned buildings to be considered abandoned, how residents are psychologically impacted by these properties and reasons for these buildings being abandoned in the target area. With this in view, the research methodology to be employed is the qualitative approach. It will be taken from the perspective of the architectural social sciences using the integrative approach which will include phenomenology and grounded theory. Data will be gathered through semi-structured interviews focusing on residents’ experiences and beliefs, and naturalistic observations will be conducted on two site visits during the workweek and weekend. Interviews will be conducted with twenty residents ages eighteen and above living in close proximity to the identified abandoned buildings and will be analysed using thematic analysis. The stakeholders of this research include the residents of Christianburg, Linden, the local town council, and policymakers. This research seeks to provide stakeholders with current data on how their community is impacted by abandoned buildings. This can aid in providing a safer community.
Keywords: Linden, Residential abandoned buildings, Psychological impact
The 4th Undergraduate Research Conference (URC22) is hosted by the University of Guyana’s Office for Undergraduate Research on May 18-20, 2022.
