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Landscape
Perception
James F. Palmer
Faculty of Landscape Architecture
SUNY ESF, Syracuse, NY
My objectives are:
• Introduce landscape perception as a
sub-field of landscape assessment.
• Use Maslow’s Hierarchy to show why
landscape perception is important.
• Summarize the main components of
landscape perception research.
• Suggest directions for future research.
Landscape Assessment
Professional Methods
Economic
Functional
Resource
Landscape Perception
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Transcendence
Self-actualization
Aesthetics
Know & Understand
Belonging, Love & Esteem
Physiological & Safety
Landscape Perception
Model
Person
View
Land
Person
Person Data
• Perceptions
– Attitudes, opinions, judgements
– Landscape classes
– Narratives & mental maps
• Behavior
– Activities, experiences & practices
• Characteristics
– Cultural & Socio-demographics
View
View Data
• Design attributes
– Form, line, color, texture, contrast
– Symmetry, framing
• Pattern measurements
– Area, perimeter, length & count of
elements
Land
Land Data
• Land cover
– Cover types & their area, perimeter, etc.
• Topography
– Relative relief & slope
• Landscape indices
– Diversity, contrast & interspersion
Research Designs
Perception = f (Person)
Perception = f (View)
Perception = f (Land)
Perception = f (Person)
• Psycho-evolutionary framework
describing adaptive value of landscape
preferences. Emphasizes on information
processing.
• Key terms: prospect/refuge, mystery,
involvement, legibility, coherence
• Proponents: Rachel & Stephen Kaplan
Perception = f (View)
• Emphasizes scene composition. May or
may not consider the meaning of an
image's content.
• Key terms: form, line, color, texture,
contrast, fore/mid/background
• Proponents: Elwood Shafer and most
agency assessment procedures.
Perception = f (Land)
• Seeks the relationship between variables
used to manage the physical environment
and our reaction to it.
• Key terms: psychophysical, land use,
landform, landscape dimensions.
• Proponents: Terry Daniels & Ervin Zube.
The model is affected by
changes of
People, Place
and Time
People Change
• Perceptions
– Adaptation vs. stability in the face of
change
• Behavior
– Capability to achieve wants, needs &
desires
• Characteristics
– The mix of people changes over time
Land Changes
• Climate change
– Habitat shifts
• Land cover & Land use
– Population growth & development
• Natural processes
– Floods & fire
– Growth & succession
Views Change
• People
– Different people compose the viewer
population
– Movement patterns and accessibility
– Importance of virtual views in life
• Landscape
– Land cover, use and topography changes
– Visual screening & obscuring, or revealing
Research Directions
Identify the role played by
Landscape Perceptions
throughout
Maslow’s Hierarchy
Are particular landscape
qualities necessary for
Healthy Humans
and is this determined by
Culture or Nature
What is the value of
Sense of Place
and
Sense of Self-in-Place
Broaden the types of
Landscapes
and
People
studied
Over time, as
Landscapes Change
how do
People’s Perceptions
change
Improve the tools of
Measurement
and
Analysis
Create more meaningful
Simulations
and
Scenarios
Change the emphasis from
Visual Quality
to
Visible Qualities
How do people
Classify Landscapes
and how do they
Discriminate
among them
Methods and results must
be
Reliable
and
Valid
How to bridge between the
scales and capabilities of
Planning / GIS
and
Design / CADD