Measuring and Understanding Public Perception of Preference for Ordinary Landscape in the Chinese Context: Case Study from Wuhan

Abstract

The change in public landscape cognition is of crucial significance in achieving sustainable landscape management, but it has not drawn enough attention in China. Landscape cognition was recognized as a cognitive process affected by both objective and subjective factors in this study. Information processing in landscape cognition was divided into two parts, which were measured by two indicators: perceptual priority (PP) and cognitive preference (CP). Factors impacting this process were analyzed based on a survey of 227 subjects with diverse backgrounds and life experiences. The results indicated that (1) a moderately patterned preference for natural landscape together with a consistent dislike of artificial landscape existed among the sample based on demographic subjects’ demographic characteristics—in particular, age and education showed significant influence on landscape preference; (2) water elements and elements with large areas, regular shapes, and low axial ratios were more easily perceived and identified. The study suggests a rationally grouping of landscape elements based on PP and CP values and illustrates how this grouping determines landscape valuation in a Chinese context. The results contribute to a general picture of public landscape perception and preference in China, which can be applied in planning practice and policy making to achieve sustainable landscape management.