Citation

Kothencz G, Kolcsár R, Cabrera-Barona P, Szilassi P. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2017; 14(7): e14070766.

Affiliation

Department of Physical Geography and Geoinformatics, University of Szeged, Egyetem utca 2-6, 6722 Szeged, Hungary. toto@geo.u-szeged.hu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph14070766

PMID

28704969

Abstract

Individual perceptions are essential when evaluating the well-being benefits from urban green spaces. This study predicted the influence of perceived green space characteristics in the city of Szeged, Hungary, on two well-being variables: the green space visitors' level of satisfaction and the self-reported quality of life. The applied logistic regression analysis used nine predictors: seven perceived green space characteristics from a questionnaire survey among visitors of five urban green spaces of Szeged; and the frequency of green space visitors' crowd-sourced recreational running paths and photographs picturing green space aesthetics.

RESULTS revealed that perceived green space characteristics with direct well-being benefits were strong predictors of both dependent variables. Perceived green space characteristics with indirect, yet fundamental, well-being benefits, namely, regulating ecosystem services had minor influence on the dependent variables. The crowd-sourced geo-tagged data predicted only the perceived quality of life contributions; but revealed spatial patterns of recreational green space use and aesthetics. This study recommends that regulating ecosystem services should be planned with a focus on residents' aesthetic and recreational needs. Further research on the combination of green space visitors´ perceptions and crowd-sourced geo-tagged data is suggested to promote planning for well-being and health benefits of urban green spaces.

Language: en

Keywords

crowd-sourced geo-tagged data; perceived green space characteristics; perceived well-being benefits; quality of life; questionnaire survey; urban green spaces