spatiality

Spatiality refers to the quality or state of being spatial and to the processes by which space is produced, organized, perceived, and inhabited. It encompasses not only physical locations but also the relations, movements, scales, and social meanings that tie places to people and practices. The concept is used across disciplines to understand how space is shaped by and shapes social life, power, culture, and knowledge.

In geography, planning, and urban studies, spatiality examines how spatial arrangements—such as streets, neighborhoods, and infrastructure—mediate everyday life and reveal patterns of inequality, accessibility, and opportunity. The idea of the production of space, associated with theorists like Henri Lefebvre, emphasizes that space is not a neutral backdrop but something inscribed by social processes, institutions, and practices.

In philosophy and critical theory, spatiality is linked to phenomenology and relational approaches to space. It considers how bodies experience space, how space organizes perception, memory, and action, and how social relations extend across or through landscapes. Thinkers such as Gaston Bachelard, Michel Foucault, Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, and Edward Soja have contributed influential perspectives on spatiality in relation to subjectivity, power, and place.

In cognitive science, design, and digital media, spatiality encompasses spatial cognition, navigation, and representation in both physical and virtual environments. Researchers study how people orient themselves, form mental maps, and interact with architecture, GIS, and virtual spaces. The concept also informs analyses of digital platforms, spatial narratives, and the politics of space in contemporary culture.