An empirical research study on prospect–refuge theory and the effect of high-rise buildings in a Japanese garden setting

Abstract

This study was carried out to test prospect-refuge theory and the effect of external high-rise buildings on landscape preferences in a traditional Japanese daimyo (feudal lords) garden, namely, the Hama-rikyu Gardens located in Tokyo, Japan. Eight sites in the garden were selected to be tested with respect to their degree of openness, their degree of safety, and the ratio of background buildings present. An in situ survey was conducted with 129 people (15-18 per site) who agreed to take part in the survey. Subjects were asked to assess the view at each site in the direction indicated by a sign and to provide responses about (a) their general preference for the view, (b) their perception of the openness of the view, (c) their perception of the safety of the site, (d) their perception of the pleasantness of/ disturbance from the background buildings. The results indicated that predefined open-protected sites were more preferred than the others; prospect (perceived openness) was an important indicator of the preferences, whereas the refuge-related symbols (perceived safety) of the garden were not perceived differently between the sites; the ratio of background buildings did not have a significant effect on either landscape preferences or perceived prospect-refuge attributes, whereas the perceived pleasantness of/disturbance from background buildings significantly affected the overall landscape preferences. The results indicated that the design techniques of Japanese daimyo gardens, including the usage of the Shakkei (borrowed scenery) technique, might reveal the principles of prospect-refuge theory. Furthermore, the effect of the surrounding buildings is considered to be a subjective aspect that depends on observers' experiences and attitudes, rather than an objective one.

The Sustainable Development of Urban Cultural Heritage Gardens Based on Tourists’ Perception: A Case Study of Tokyo’s Cultural Heritage Gardens

“…In addition, it is found that age and nationality (East Asian or not) had a certain degree of influence on the predictability of SVF, which is consistent with the research results of Senoglu et al [29]. We believe that people of different ages will have different opinions on the renewal and sustainable development of cultural heritage gardens.…”

“…Meanwhile, SVF and tourist preferences were positively related; and GVF was negatively correlated. However, BVF did not show any strong correlation, which also validated the research of Senoglu et al, that the visible building index does not explain tourist preferences [29].…”

“…Many subsequent studies have also argued that those modern high-rise buildings have harmed the gardens [25][26][27][28]. More recently, other opinions have appeared which believe that although modern buildings affect the landscape of traditional gardens, the contrast between modern and classic may not necessarily be negative, and may even stimulate people's imagination [29]. Such opinions, however, have not been confirmed through any research.…”

“…The judgments were based on theories without conducting visitors' surveys, and the correlation between spatial features and visitor preferences were not analyzed. Senoglu et al studied the impact of the high-rise buildings outside the Hama-rikyu Gardens in 2018 and collected visitors' attitudes and preferences through questionnaires [29]. They verified the prospect-refuge theory in Hama-rikyu Gardens but failed to find a correlation between geometric proportions of the buildings and tourists' preferences.…”

Nature Archetypes – Concepts Related to Objects and Phenomena in Natural Environments. A Swedish Case

“…Studies dealing with the development of health-promoting green spaces often refer to the qualities that Appleton (1975) emphasizes in his Prospect-Refuge theory (e.g., Senoglu et al, 2018 ). Other authors refer to Orians (1986) and his savannah theory (e.g., Townsend and Barton, 2018 ) or to Wilson (1984) and his biophilia theory (e.g., Browning et al, 2014 ).…”