Restorative Effects of Multi-Sensory Perception in Urban Green Space: A Case Study of Urban Park in Guangzhou, China.

Tianyao Zhang,Jiahui Liu,Hongyang Li

doi:10.3390/ijerph16244943

Abstract

Urban green space is believed as a beneficial landscape for mental restoration in the urban settings. This study aims to examine the restorative quality of the urban green space from a multi-sensory perspective, focusing on both direct and indirect connections between visual, auditory, and tactile sensations and mental restoration. Two hundred and fifty park users of Tianhe Park in Guangzhou, China, were surveyed. Data were collected regarding their three types of sensations, i.e., the perceived mental restoration, health-related behavioral activities and emotional responses in the urban park. As a result, visual and auditory sensation were found to be linked with mental restoration directly and indirectly, while the tactile sensation was only associated with mental restoration indirectly; and health-related behaviors and emotional response mediated the relations between the three sensations and mental restoration significantly. It is concluded that the greater effects of auditory sensation and the under-studied potential effects of tactile sensation on mental restoration should be more emphasized in the future design of urban park. This is expected to contribute to the high restorative quality of the urban green space and promote public health.

Highlights

Increasing attention has been paid to the restorative landscape associated with public health during the past decade, acknowledging the contribution of an appealing landscape to health and wellbeing [1]
We propose that natural sounds, ‘happy people’ sounds such as singing and music, quiet background city, and less traffic noise could contribute to a pleasant soundscape environment that nurtures better mental restoration
For the association between tactile sensation and mental restoration, this study argues that the perception of touching may determine the restorative quality of the urban park through influencing the health-related activities and the resultant emotions

Summary

Introduction

Increasing attention has been paid to the restorative landscape associated with public health during the past decade, acknowledging the contribution of an appealing landscape to health and wellbeing [1]. The way of landscape being perceived, experienced and used as a resource for health and health-related behaviors, remains an open question [2]. Urban green space has been regarded as a typical landscape for health promotion due to its independent salutogenic effects [3,4]. Studies on mental restoration of urban green space in relation to health often highlight perceived sensory dimensions of the landscape [3], of particular note is that landscape is experienced in multisensory manner with sensory coordination [2,3], indicating that the perception is a holistic process integrating information from various senses such as sight and hearing [8]. Most extant studies focus primarily on the visual sensation, which has been regarded as the most important

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