1.2: Geography and its relationship with other disciplines
- Page ID
- 40178
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Why is Geography Interdisciplinary?
Geography is the study of human nature relationships and its variations over time and space. Geography attempts to answer questions related to the distribution of elements and explain why certain phenomena occur in particular places and not in others. Explanations to such questions are provided keeping in mind the concepts of location, environment and population. In order to explain why a certain phenomenon occurs in a particular location, geography uses information from other disciplines contributing to its interdisciplinary nature.
Geography works as a bridge between natural and social sciences which makes it a interdisciplinary subject. It not only looks at distribution of objects but also tries to understand how they have changed and come to be. This holistic approach taken by geographers makes the subject strongly connected with other disciplines where geographers draw from other disciplines and other disciplines draw from geography. Here we will look at some of the subjects geography is related to and try to highlight how geography is unique in the way it studies that subject.
Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\) diagram visually represents the interdisciplinary nature of geography. At the center is a large circle labeled "GEOGRAPHY", symbolizing the core discipline. Surrounding it are smaller circles, each representing a field that intersects with geography. In counter clock wise direction:
- Meteorology connects to Climatology.
- Marine Science connects to Marine Geography.
- Psychology connects to Behavioral Geography.
- History connects to Historical Geography.
- Planning and Urban Studies connect to Urban Geography.
- Health Sciences connect to Medical Geography.
- Biology connects to Biogeography.
- Economics connects to Economic Geography.
- Sociology and Anthropology connect to Cultural Geography.
- Geology connects to Geomorphology.
- Political Science connects to Political Geography.
- Demography connects to Population Geography.
In order to correctly understand the interdisciplinary nature of geography let us now looks at some perspectives that geography focusses on which are spatial analysis, human-environment interaction, scale and problem solving.
Spatial Analysis
Geography primarily focusses on space which includes the distribution, patterns, and relationships of phenomena across the Earth's surface. This spatial enables it to connect to other disciplines. In order to understand the spread of a disease which comes under the realm of medical geography, knowledge of biology/health is required. This requires knowing where populations are located and how they interact (human geography), which might be influenced by physical barriers or transportation networks (physical geography/planning).
Human-Environment Interaction
The primary theme in geography is questioning and understanding the dynamic relationship between humans and their environment. This requires understanding both human systems (sociology, economics, political science) and natural systems (ecology, climatology, hydrology) and drawing meaningful conclusions based on knowledge from both.
Scale
Geographers examine phenomena at both local and global scales. This often means integrating information from different disciplines that might specialize in particular scales. For instance, understanding global climate change requires insights from meteorology, oceanography, and glaciology (natural sciences), but also from economics, policy, demography, anthropology and sociology to address its human causes and impacts (social sciences) as well as suggest culturally friendly remedial measures.
Problem-Solving
Many real-world problems are complex and require an interdisciplinary approach for a holistic understanding of the causes, impacts and suggest remedies. Geography, with its integrative nature, is well-equipped to handle global and local issues like climate change adaptation, disaster management, sustainable development, pandemic mitigation and urban planning, by integrating knowledge from various fields. Mapping techniques used in geography help illustrate the spread of the problem and identify the population that would be affected. Due to the subject's understanding of population and culture the discipline can enable policy makers to suggest culturally friendly remedial measures.
Examples of Geography's Interdisciplinary Nature
Biogeography
Integrates biology and geography into the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems across space and time. It considers factors like climate, geology, and human activity in shaping biodiversity.
Climatology (within Physical Geography)
Intersects with meteorology (the study of weather) and atmospheric physics to understand climate patterns, atmospheric processes, and their impact on different regions. Geography enables climatic study at different scales. Climate change research, for instance, heavily dependent on this interdisciplinary connection, integrating meteorological data with geographical analysis of impacts.
Environmental Geography
Combines environmental science, ecology, and social sciences to analyze human impacts on the environment, natural resource management, and culturally friendly conservation strategies that are favorable to the local livelihood and environment. Creating a national park, for example, requires understanding ecological zones, species distribution, knowledge of the land and human-environment interactions.
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing
These computer-based mapping techniques and modern mapping methods have increasingly become integral to modern geography and are widely implemented across numerous disciplines (for example, environmental science, urban planning, public health, business) to collect, analyze, and visualize spatial data.
Medical Geography
Combines the integrated spatial knowledge of geography and mapping techniques with epidemiology, public health, sociology, anthropology, environmental science and statistics to study the spread of diseases, recognize health disparities, identify vulnerable population and suggest culturally acceptable preventive methods. Here G.I.S. is used not only to map the spread of diseases but also to look at accessibility to medical facilities to form informed public health interventions.
Urban Geography
Incorporates knowledge of sociology, economics, planning, population, culture and political science to study the spatial organization of cities, urban development, social inequalities, and transportation systems.
The diagram below illustrates the interdisciplinary nature of geography.
What would we call the branch of geography that studies elements of weather and climate and its variations over time and place.
Solution
The answer would be Climatology. Climatology studies elements of weather and climate. It focusses not only on factors that influence weather and climate but also looks at climatic regions around the world.