Afford to paddle, afford to swim: exploring the affordances of the outdoor environment at a coastal community in affecting young children’s play behaviour

Abstract

In children's geographies of the rural milieu, little is known about the geography of the outdoor environment in coastal areas, especially in rural fishing villages. This study explores affordance levels of the outdoor environment in a rural coastal area, with specific reference to young children's play behaviour. This study used an ethnographic approach together with direct participant observations, auto photographs, go-along interviews, and focus group interviews, to elicit the numbers of affordances experienced by 45 respondents, aged 3–13, in Bum Bum Island, Sabah, Malaysia. Hot Spot (Getis-Ord Gi*) spatial statistical and content analyses revealed that perceived affordances are the highest levels of affordances accumulated, followed by utilized and shaped affordances. The most frequent hot spots for the perceived, utilized and shaped affordances occurred in the transitional zone compared to the land and sea zones. This zone was the nucleus for actions of daily play-based experiences for the children in the coastal community based on the natural phenomena of the tides.