Beyond absolute space: modeling disease dispersion and reactive actions from a multi-spatialization perspective

Dynamic geographical phenomena, such as the transmission of communicable diseases, are inherently complex processes. Concerns have arisen in the GIScience community that the prevailing absolute spatialization is insufficient to capture the complexity. This study investigates health risks in the frame of multiple spatializations: relational space (home and workplaces), relative space (serviceplaces), and mental space (perception). First, we estimate health risks in terms of the presence of influenza-like illness symptoms in relational space and relative space. Second, we estimate the probability of taking reactive actions based on health threats perceived in mental space. A two-layer Bayesian network model and the SHAP model are used to support the intended study. Findings reaffirm the pivotal role of relational space in disease transmission. Relative space is found to impose substantial health risks that exceeded those of relational space, yet the risks varied across serviceplace types. Perceived health threats in mental space effectively motivated reactive actions. The multi-spatialization frame enables the representation of health risks at the nexus of proximity, relations, relative contacts, and perception, and can be extended to many geographical phenomena both theoretically and empirically.