Measuring visitor satisfaction toward peri-urban green and open spaces based on social media data

Abstract

The peri-urban area has become a heated target of research in developing countries against the background of rapid urbanization. Especially, as the provider of ecological services and the arena of public life, green and open spaces (GOSs) in this area are at high risk of being encroached upon and privatized. Understanding and interpreting visitor satisfaction help us make more informed policies on peri-urban GOSs. Traditionally, visitor satisfaction is measured through small-group analysis methods, including questionnaire surveys and semi-structured interviews. The growing popularity of online user-generated data, such as social media data, and the application of the artificial intelligence technique enable us to keep better track of visitor feedback and understand how visitors perceive these spaces in a smarter manner. In view of this, our paper proposes a novel social media–based methodology to quantify visitor satisfaction toward peri-urban GOSs and identify its shaping factors. The usefulness of this methodology is demonstrated through investigating an empirical case in Shenzhen, China. The research findings of this paper shed light on policy implications on how to better protect the natural characteristics and integrity of peri-urban GOSs and how to develop them in response to future demands.