A theory which argues that the contexts in which human activity takes place—the time, the space, and the place in the sequence of events—are crucial to the nature of that activity. T. Hägerstrand (Regional Studies, 1984), who gave birth to the idea, explained that processes are constrained and shaped by the terrestrial space and time in which they take place: every action is situated in, and shaped by, a particular space and time.

This way of thinking strengthens the re-emergence of regional geography as a discipline, but space is not just the context for human activity; it is also a consequence of it. See also embeddedness.

A Dictionary of Geography. Copyright © Susan Mayhew 1992, 1997, 2004. All rights reserved.