Common Spaces to Support Community Consciousness of High-rise Apartment Complexes in Beijing, China

Abstract

High-rise apartments, often associated with convenience and concentrated urban life, are one of the most representative forms of living in the era of urbanization and industrial modernization. Social issues, such as the rising urbanization rate and increasing population density, have made this type of housing more socially focused. The purpose of this study was to survey the residents of high-rise apartment complexes in China to discover the uses of common spaces and the community consciousness of inhabitants, with the aim of providing basic data for better planning of common spaces in the complex to support occupants’ community consciousness. Ultimately, the study seeks to explore the functioning of and the satisfaction with the common spaces within the complex. Responses to these points were grouped according to gender and type of residence. A total of 180 questionnaires were collected over January 18-30, 2019, of which 160 were used for statistical analysis, via SPSS Statistics 23.0. The results show that, overall, the residents were not satisfied with the existing common space of the apartment, and that utilization rates decreased with the degree of satisfaction. In addition, community consciousness varied among respondents according to their gender and type of residence; thus, specific community facilities should be developed, or programs should be implemented to improve existing plans, to increase the utilization of community facilities by various groups.