Low and Altman (1992) suggest that evolution of
concepts like place within the social sciences often follows
a common trajectory. In the first stage, scholars treat a new
concept as if there is a consensus about its meaning. The
second stage is initiated by an erosion of this presumed
consensus. Scholars then debate the meaning of concepts
with greater rigor, developing taxonomies to characterize
different but often related phenomena encompassed within
the original concept in a quest for conceptual clarity amid
the diversity of interpretations. The third stage involves
‘‘development of systematic theoretical positions and
clearly delineated programs of research and application
of knowledge to the solution of practical problems’’ (p. 3).