Assessment of visual quality and social perception of cultural landscapes: application to Anyi traditional villages, China

Abstract

The assessment of landscape visual quality (LVQ) holds significant importance in the preservation and advancement of traditional villages. One challenge in measuring human perception lies in establishing a connection between public preferences and landscape characteristics. This study conducted an analysis of social media data from Anyi traditional villages in China to address this issue and identified eight human perceptions: naturalness, ancientness, colorfulness, variety, uniqueness, ingenuity, vividness, and pleasantness. A total of thirty characteristic indicators with potential explanations for LVQ were determined by research group through field investigations. A questionnaire survey was developed to assess human’s preferences using 82 traditional village photos, and scores for the eight perceptions were obtained. The logistic regression was employed to establish distinct perception models, with perceptions serving as the dependent variables and characteristic indicators as the independent variables. Nomograms were subsequently utilized to visualize regression results and display the correlation between these two factors. The findings suggest that nomograms facilitate intuitive determination of the weights assigned to characteristic indicators in perceptual models, as well as their influence on LVQ. This work provides a reference for decision-making related to the adaptive protection and development of traditional villages, thereby hel** to enhance the competitiveness of tourist destinations.

Introduction

Traditional villages, commonly known as "ancient villages" refer to the village settlement with a long history and well preservation [1]. The productive and living activities of indigenous communities nurtured a unique cultural landscape [2]. Sauer C. O. stated in his “The Morphology of Landscape” that the cultural landscape is a synthesis of natural and human factors that shape the features of a certain location at any specific period, and it is continually changing as a result of human activity [3]. The World Heritage Committee adopted the term "cultural landscape" for the first time in 1992, believing that it has extraordinarily rich implications of the connection between nature and humans, and that it is a shared masterpiece inextricably linked to both humans and nature [4]. The traditional villages are regarded as cultural landscapes that encompass a wealth of historical, ethnic, and regional cultural information [1], making them highly sought-after tourist destinations at present. While tourism serves as a compensatory measure for the decline of traditional village industries and fosters economic growth, it also poses challenges to landscape conservation, rendering it an indispensable factor in driving transformations within traditional villages [5]. With the rapid development of global urbanization, industrialization and modernization, a wide range of cultural landscape protection projects have been set off around the world [45]. The camera is optimally positioned at a height of 1.5 m from the ground, which is considered as the comfortable sight height [45], and ultimately obtained 82 photo samples (Table 2). Thirdly, extracting characteristic indicators from different categories of landscape photos. The research group discussed the criteria and standards for discriminating characteristic indicators of different landscape categories in advance, and resolved differences of opinion through discussion. The physical characteristics of the natural, cultural, agricultural, and other landscapes in villages are mostly distinguishable, and there is little controversy in determining the type of landscape represented by the photos. The research team assessed the landscape features of each photo based on the evaluation criteria (Group standard of Chinese Society of Landscape Architecture No T/CHSLA 50012—2022) for rural landscape resources (detailed guidance is provided in Appendix A), and a total of 30 characteristic indicators were determined (Fig. 4).

Table 2 Classification of photo samples

Fig. 4

Landscape characteristic indicators of Anyi villages

Statistical analysis

The LVQ of Anyi traditional villages was assessed by the subjective perception of tourists. The survey on tourists' perception preferences was conducted using a photo elicitation interview and a semi-structured questionnaire (Table 3). We recruited a total of 64 adult participants from tourists, including 28 males and 36 females during the study period. They are from diverse backgrounds, and the confidentiality of each participant is guaranteed. The permission for human subjects had been approved prior to the investigation. Participants were instructed to select the perception category that best represented the sample landscape from eight perception categories based on their perceived intensity levels. Each category was assigned points ranging from 8 for the strongest perception to 0 for the unchosen category. Subsequently, a computation and standardization procedure like the Scenic Beauty Estimation [12, 28] were employed to rank each landscape's value. Pearson correlation analysis [

Fig. 11

The ancientness perception intensity and perception path of Anyi ancient village landscapes: the ancient buildings, ancient infrastructure, and relics of traditional villages will have a positive impact on tourists' perception of the ancient scenery during their travels, guiding them to spend more time stop** and admiring the unique historical relics and culture of traditional villages