Rural Morphology and Forces Driving Change in Rapidly Urbanizing Areas: A Case Study in Fujian, China

Lishan Xiao, Peiqi Shi, Tong Lin, Ning Chen and Sha Huang
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Lishan Xiao: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Peiqi Shi: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Tong Lin: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Ning Chen: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Sha Huang: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 9, 1-15

Abstract: Rapid urbanization in China has transformed many rural areas from agriculture-dominated to diverse systems, but studies of rural morphology are limited compared to studies of urban settlement. This paper uses a fractal dimension (FD) value to analyze the change in rural morphology in Fujian Province, a region with a long history of rural settlement and rapid recent urbanization, and to explore the factors that influenced this change. We found that the rural FD value increased from 2000 to 2012 and that rural morphology was spatially heterogeneous. FD was generally lower than in urban areas but very close to a typical urban area value in the southeast coastal region. A structural equation model was used to identify key factors influencing rural morphology, which were natural conditions, rurality and economic development, while historic administration had the smallest positive effect. With a long history and unique administrative system, the spatial morphology of Chinese rural areas has shown characteristics distinct from compact urban or scattered rural areas. The urban planning method adopted by rural planners is not suitable in rural regions, because the planning potential of rural areas with high and low FD values varies. Although rural planning currently uses a very similar approach to urban planning, it should use a local, flexible and adaptive policy based on rural morphological characteristics.

Keywords: rural settlement; urbanization; fractal dimension; rural transformation; rural planning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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