Preference, restorativeness and perceived environmental quality of small urban spaces / Preferencia, restauración y calidad ambiental percibida en plazas urbanas

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of small urban spaces (or pocket parks) in cities as an opportunity to access nature and restorativeness. The study was performed in nine squares located in the central zone of the city of Madrid. A total of 537 people were interviewed in situ about their preferences, as well as the perceived quality and environmental restorativeness of these places. The results show that preference is influenced by the amount of vegetation and perceived restorativeness, and that restorativeness in turn is determined by perceived vegetation and social interaction. The benefits of this restorative role should be considered when designing small urban squares, taking care to include plants and vegetation as well as appropriate equipment, and making these spaces a valuable element within the green infrastructure of major cities.

Exploring the Links Between Biophilic and Restorative Qualities of Exterior and Interior Spaces in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico

“…Comparative analysis shows that the type of categorized places affects the perceptions of people of restorative (global) potential, negative mood states (fatigue, tension, and confusion), and situational stress (stress and exhaustion). The category of large parks, which has the highest amount of vegetation of all categories, is also the one with the highest scores of restorative potential, being consistent with previous studies (Giuseppe et al, 2013;Lorenzo et al, 2016;Pasanen et al, 2018a;Cheon et al, 2019;Kang and Kim, 2019). Meanwhile, small parks present moderate levels of restorative potential, suggesting that the spatial extension and the higher vegetation proportion of large parks play a vital role in promoting a higher restoration.…”

“…Restorative built spaces include green spaces (Lorenzo et al, 2016;Stigsdotter et al, 2017), residential and non-residential streetscapes (Gidlow et al, 2016;Kabisch et al, 2021), blue spaces (Gidlow et al, 2016;Subiza-Pérez et al, 2020;Kajosaari and Pasanen, 2021), cultural and historic places (Ouellette et al, 2005;Clow and Fredhoi, 2006;Hidalgo et al, 2006;Fornara and Troffa, 2009;Herzog et al, 2010;Xu et al, 2018;Subiza-Pérez et al, 2021), and, in a lesser extent, indoor built spaces (e.g., shopping malls and coffee shops, Staats et al, 2016;Payne and Guastavino, 2018;work environments, Raanaas et al, 2011;Korpela et al, 2014). Restorative attributes of these space categories relate to their aesthetic qualities (Galindo and Hidalgo, 2005;Lindal and Hartig, 2013;Subiza-Pérez et al, 2020), the degree of naturalness, diversity of vegetation, tree cover density, functionality, and extension (Van den Berg et al, 2014;Ettema, 2016;Lorenzo et al, 2016). These attributes have been consistently studied as predictors of restorative experiences.…”

Are greenspace attributes associated with perceived restorativeness? A comparative study of urban cemeteries and parks in Edinburgh, Scotland

“…Several attributes of an urban environment have been found to be associated with a higher level of perceived restorativeness, including environments with natural green elements (Hernández and Hidalgo, 2005;Lorenzo et al, 2016), less anthropogenic features (Carrus et al, 2013) and better air and water qualities of coastal parks (Hipp and Ogunseitan, 2011). Hartig et al (1996) suggested that some environments might lead to a more complete restorative recovery than others.…”

Influence of Perceived Environmental Quality on the Perceived Restorativeness of Public Spaces

“…By contrast, in another study on urban squares, Lorenzo et al (2016) confirm the relationship between users' preferences and amount of vegetation. However, in this study, the role that the physical structures or the activities of the users of squares can play was not considered.…”