Landscape Disturbance Gradients: The Importance of the Type of Scene When Evaluating Landscape Preferences and Perceptions

Adison Altamirano, Carolina Gonzalez-Suhr, Caroline Marien, Germán Catalán, Alejandro Miranda, Marco Prado, Laurent Tits, Lorena Vieli and Paula Meli
Additional contact information
Adison Altamirano: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Carolina Gonzalez-Suhr: Departamento de Administración y Economía, Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Empresariales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Caroline Marien: Division Forest, Nature & Landscape KU Leuven, 30001 Leuven, Belgium
Germán Catalán: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Alejandro Miranda: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Marco Prado: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Laurent Tits: Division Forest, Nature & Landscape KU Leuven, 30001 Leuven, Belgium
Lorena Vieli: Butamallin Research Center for Global Change, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias y Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile
Paula Meli: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de La Frontera, P.O. Box 54-D, Temuco 4780000, Chile

Land, 2020, vol. 9, issue 9, 1-23

Abstract: Understanding of people’s landscape preferences is important for decision-making about land planning, particularly in the disturbance patterns that usually occur in rural-urban gradients. However, the use of different types of images concerning the same landscape may influence social preferences and thus perceptions of landscape management and planning decisions. We evaluated landscape preferences and perceptions in four landscapes of southern Chile. We specifically: (1) compared people’s perceptions related to living in, visiting, the scenic beauty, well-being, risks, and level of landscape disturbance; and (2) evaluated the influence of the type of scene (i.e., eye-level or aerial images) in these preferences and perceptions. Preferences and perceptions resulted to be better when using eye-level (4.0 ± 1.1) than aerial (3.7 ± 0.6) images. In general, we observed a negative association between preferences and perceptions and the landscape disturbance; however, it was consistent when using aerial images but was masked when valuing landscape through eye-level images. Implications of these results are relevant because by far, most landscape preference studies use traditional eye-level images. Different types of scenes should be considered in order to embrace the landscape preferences and perceptions of all those involved and help decision-making in landscape planning.

Keywords: ecosystem services supply; gradient approach; land use; land cover; remote sensing; rural-urban gradients; social-ecological resilience; social perceptions; well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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