TY - JOUR

T1 - Residents’ urbanized landscape preferences in rural areas reveal the importance of naturalness-livability contrast

AU - Yang, Gaoyuan

AU - Yu, Zhaowu

AU - Luo, Tao

AU - Kristensen, Lone Søderkvist

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2022, Science in China Press.

PY - 2022

Y1 - 2022

N2 - Urbanization has caused significant landscape changes in rural areas, leading to the emergence of urbanized landscapes (ULs), which have been generally criticized by authorities and professionals. However, perceptions of ULs among local residents have rarely been studied. In this study, we chose five typical categories of ULs from rapidly transforming villages in Fujian Province, China — hardened water bank (HWB), big pavilion (BPA), big memorial arch (BMA), big ornamental lawn (BOL), and big square (BSQ) to do the study. We identified how these ULs were rated and ranked by on-site surveys, as well as how related aesthetic and multifunctional landscape characters (LCs) played a role. The results (N=550) showed that 1) residents supported the construction of ULs, and the most preferred category was that with the most natural elements (BOL) that was simultaneously well maintained. 2) For the residents, the longer they had resided in the village and the fewer connections they had with the city, the more in favor they were of the ULs, and the more eager they were for landscape change. In addition, residents with higher education and Communist Party of China membership valued the naturalness related LCs more highly. 3) Two contradictory preference features, naturalness and livability, should be well coordinated and balanced to construct an improved favorable village for the residents, to realize a balanced and sustainable development path. This study makes great theoretical contributions to landscape research and provides new insights into rural planning and construction.

AB - Urbanization has caused significant landscape changes in rural areas, leading to the emergence of urbanized landscapes (ULs), which have been generally criticized by authorities and professionals. However, perceptions of ULs among local residents have rarely been studied. In this study, we chose five typical categories of ULs from rapidly transforming villages in Fujian Province, China — hardened water bank (HWB), big pavilion (BPA), big memorial arch (BMA), big ornamental lawn (BOL), and big square (BSQ) to do the study. We identified how these ULs were rated and ranked by on-site surveys, as well as how related aesthetic and multifunctional landscape characters (LCs) played a role. The results (N=550) showed that 1) residents supported the construction of ULs, and the most preferred category was that with the most natural elements (BOL) that was simultaneously well maintained. 2) For the residents, the longer they had resided in the village and the fewer connections they had with the city, the more in favor they were of the ULs, and the more eager they were for landscape change. In addition, residents with higher education and Communist Party of China membership valued the naturalness related LCs more highly. 3) Two contradictory preference features, naturalness and livability, should be well coordinated and balanced to construct an improved favorable village for the residents, to realize a balanced and sustainable development path. This study makes great theoretical contributions to landscape research and provides new insights into rural planning and construction.

KW - landscape change

KW - landscape characters

KW - landscape planning

KW - landscape preference

KW - residents

KW - rural areas

KW - urbanized landscapes

U2 - 10.1007/s11442-022-2007-4

DO - 10.1007/s11442-022-2007-4

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:85135453630

VL - 32

SP - 1493

EP - 1512

JO - Journal of Chinese Geography

JF - Journal of Chinese Geography

SN - 0375-5444

IS - 8

ER -