Perception of National Park Soundscape and Its Effects on Visual Aesthetics

Peng Wang, Chaoqun Zhang, Hesheng Xie, Wenjuan Yang and Youjun He
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Peng Wang: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Chaoqun Zhang: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Hesheng Xie: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Wenjuan Yang: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Youjun He: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-18

Abstract: Soundscape perception is a very weak link in the national park landscape evaluation system in China. A thorough understanding of soundscapes and their effects on visual aesthetics is important for the management of national park landscapes. In this study, features of soundscapes (e.g., loudness, frequency, preference, and auditory satisfaction) were investigated based on 394 valid questionnaires of residents in the Qianjiangyuan National Park Pilot Area. The effects of soundscape on visual aesthetics were analyzed using the PLS-SEM. The results demonstrated that: (1) Peddling voice and insect sound were the loudest components in the soundscape, running water and birdsong were the most commonly heard and most preferred, religious sound was the quietest and least frequently heard, and horn was the least preferred. Residents in the Pilot Area were generally satisfied with the auditory environment. (2) Both sound frequency and preference have significant effects on auditory satisfaction, but preference (path coefficient = 0.426) has a larger effect than does frequency (path coefficient = 0.228). (3) Loudness has negligible effects on visual aesthetics, but other soundscape characteristics did influence visual aesthetics. Soundscape preference had the most significant effect (path coefficient = 0.305), followed by auditory satisfaction (path coefficient = 0.174), and sound frequency (path coefficient = 0.165). Among them, effects of perception frequency are the indirect utilities.

Keywords: landscape architecture; soundscape; perception behavior; national park of China; visual aesthetics; subjective perception (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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