Rural Morphology and Forces Driving Change in Rapidly Urbanizing Areas: A Case Study in Fujian, China

Abstract

Rapid urbanization in China has transformed many rural areas from agriculture-dominated to diverse systems, but studies of rural morphology are limited compared to studies of urban settlement. This paper uses a fractal dimension (FD) value to analyze the change in rural morphology in Fujian Province, a region with a long history of rural settlement and rapid recent urbanization, and to explore the factors that influenced this change. We found that the rural FD value increased from 2000 to 2012 and that rural morphology was spatially heterogeneous. FD was generally lower than in urban areas but very close to a typical urban area value in the southeast coastal region. A structural equation model was used to identify key factors influencing rural morphology, which were natural conditions, rurality and economic development, while historic administration had the smallest positive effect. With a long history and unique administrative system, the spatial morphology of Chinese rural areas has shown characteristics distinct from compact urban or scattered rural areas. The urban planning method adopted by rural planners is not suitable in rural regions, because the planning potential of rural areas with high and low FD values varies. Although rural planning currently uses a very similar approach to urban planning, it should use a local, flexible and adaptive policy based on rural morphological characteristics.

Spatial and temporal distribution of rural settlements and influencing mechanisms in Inner Mongolia, China

“…This is the case in Inner Mongolia, which is a large agricultural province, and the importance of cultivated land is irreplaceable. With the development of the economy and the acceleration of urbanization, the influence of central towns has become more prominent [ 7 , 9 , 28 , 32 ]. Population density has an impact not only on the distribution of rural settlements, but also on local economic development, resource allocation, and other important effects [ 34 , 36 ].…”

“…It is worth affirming, however, that the optimization and regulation of rural areas must be carried out according to local conditions, especially in the minority border areas of Inner Mongolia. The willingness of local residents should be assured, and the regional reality, national culture, customs, and religious beliefs should be respected because the previous government-led a top-down remediation plan or relied solely on the short-term design of planners—without the participation of local residents in the optimization of control—and has not been able to achieve better results [ 5 , 9 , 43 ].…”

“…Meanwhile, as the core for grasping adjustments to the rural human-land relationship, spatial and temporal patterns are indispensable to current status and evolution of rural revitalization [ 6 – 8 ]. With the rapid social and economic development of China’s reform and opening up, predominantly rapid urbanization and industrialization, China’s rural settlements present a series of “rural diseases” such as intensified land use, lack of planning, hollowing out, and environmental defilement, which have seriously limited the modernization of agriculture and rural areas [ 9 – 13 ]. To solve this problem, exploring the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of rural settlements and revealing the laws of their diachronic evolution, including the influencing mechanisms, have become the current research hot spots.…”

“…Additionally, a series of major livelihood projects began to implement, such as immigration and relocation in ecologically vulnerable areas, beautiful countryside, characteristic towns, and comprehensive land improvement. The “top-down” immigration policy led by the government, which relocates residents from a deteriorating ecological area to concentrated resettlement, has not achieved a real sense of moving out, stabilizing, and enriching [ 5 , 9 , 43 ]. It is therefore necessary to fully understand the spatial distribution characteristics and influencing mechanisms of rural settlements in different periods, scales, and regions in Inner Mongolia to put forward a feasible policy system according to local conditions and achieve the win-win goal of constructing an ecological civilization and ensuring people’s living and working in peace and contentment in the new era.…”

Driving Forces for the Spatial Reconstruction of Rural Settlements in Mountainous Areas Based on Structural Equation Models: A Case Study in Western China

“…Based on existing literature studies and theoretical analyses [41,[78][79][80][81][82], an initial SEM model of factors that influenced the intention of peasant households concerning the spatial reconstruction of rural settlements in mountainous areas was constructed (Figure 3). Interaction was assumed between the five latent variables: external attractions, geological disasters, internal impetus, production cohesion, and life cohesion.…”