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Aesthetic Perception of Residential Landscapes in Nujiang Lisu AutonomousPrefecture, Yunnan ProvinceAuthor(s): Fan Jie, Hu Wangshu, Chen Dong and Sun WeiSource: Journal of Resources and Ecology, 4(2):157-164. 2013.Published By: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy ofSciencesDOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5814/j.issn.1674-764x.2013.02.008URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.5814/j.issn.1674-764x.2013.02.008

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J. Resour. Ecol. 2013 4 (2) 157-164 DOI:10.5814/j.issn.1674-764x.2013.02.008www.jorae.cn

June, 2013 Journal of Resources and Ecology Vol.4 No.2

Received: 2013-02-18 Accepted: 2013-05-22Foundation: National Key Technology R&D Program (No. 2008BAH31B01); Key Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KZZD-EW-06);

Key Project of the National Natural Sciences Foundation (No.40830741).* Corresponding author: HU Wangshu. Email: hws99@126.com.

1 IntroductionModern research concerning landscape perception, particularly aesthetic perception, has been growing in Europe and the USA since the mid-20th century. A relatively mature theoretical and methodological system for this research has gradually evolved (Zube et al. 1982; Zhou 1995; Wang et al. 2006a). Approaches for evaluating the aesthetic perceptions of landscapes are based on expert opinion or public opinion, and these methods have been extensively applied in various types of research around the world (Daniel 2001). However, the growth of the modern ecological movement and increasing popularity of the concept of environmental protection among the general population have created a number of challenges for the traditional research paradigm regarding the aesthetic perception of landscapes

(Russ and Daniel 2002). As a result of these challenges, in recent years, research in this field has gradually diversified from a relatively single-minded focus on the subjective aesthetic feelings and demands with respect to landscapes. Specifically, issues regarding not only objective landscape considerations (such as patterns and processes) but also the protection and sustainable development of particular landscapes have received greater attention (Turner 1989; Freeman and Ray 2001; Gobster 2010). This shift in the field has substantially expanded the content and scope of studies regarding landscape perception (Russ and Daniel 2002; Gobster et al. 2007; Cheng 2009).

These new research trends have caused studies in this field to become more concerned with local residents’ perceptions and evaluations of their landscapes. Studies in this field demonstrate that local residents differ from

Aesthetic Perception of Residential Landscapes in Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province

FAN Jie, HU Wangshu*, CHEN Dong and SUN Wei

Key Laboratory of Regional Sustainable Development Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China

Abstract:

Key words:

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tourists or experts, with respect to the content, causes, evaluation and demands of the landscapes (Van den Berg et al. 1998; Ryan 2002, 2006; Karthäuser et al. 2011). Local residents are not only the main entities that influence landscape change but are also part of the landscape itself. Thus, residents’ perceptions of landscapes can affect their own sense of belonging to and identifying with these residential landscapes; moreover, through effects on their behaviors, these perceptions can also both directly and indirectly affect changes in regional large-scale landscapes (Dhubháin et al. 2009). Residents will be more conscious and proactive in protecting their landscapes if they believe that their local landscapes are beautiful (Erickson et al. 2002). And the study of these values leads to a more profound understanding of the formation and evolution of regional landscapes and contributes to our understanding of human-earth relationships. For example, these studies allow both material and non-material characteristics and values of landscapes to be explored (Rao et al. 2003; Paré et al. 2010; Beza 2010) and can promote the protection and sustainable development of landscapes in ways that respect the prerequisite of upholding local natural foundations and cultural traditions (Trakolis 2001; Wallner et al. 2007; Lund et al. 2010; Byg et al. 2012). These considerations are particularly significant for areas featuring regional landscapes with relatively high aesthetic values.

In China, these types of regions are typically found in remote areas of poor infrastructure and relatively slow economies. Here, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture (hereafter Nujiang) of Yunnan province was selected as a representative region that exhibits these traits (Wang et al. 2006b; Han 2012). This remote location and unique natural and humanistic environment create unmatched landscape resources and extremely high aesthetic values in Nujiang; however, these resources have not been reasonably protected or fully explored. The current study is based on the fundamental hypothesis that the more positive the perceptions of residents regarding the beauty of their landscapes, the more conducive they will be to protection and sustainable development of the landscape. We also analyzed the factors that influence local residents’ aesthetic perceptions in Nujiang to determine how to ensure residents play a positive role in the protection and utilization of the overall landscape in a manner that exploits landscape resources sustainably.

2 Study areaNujiang is located in northwestern of Yunnan (Fig. 1). This prefecture lies in the central section of the Hengduan Mountains on a southern extension of the Tibetan Plateau and includes a total area of 14 703 km2. The prefecture is locally characterized as “four mountains sandwiching three rivers”, and contains the geomorphological features of steep mountains and canyons. The difference in elevation between the highest and lowest points of the prefecture is 4390 m (from 738 m to 5128 m above sea level). The area

has a mountainous subtropical monsoon climate with mild temperatures and abundant rainfall; however, differences in elevation, topography and latitude across the region can cause substantial local variation in weather and climate conditions.

Nujiang includes the following four counties: Lushui, Lanping, Fugong, and Gongshan. Lushui, Fugong and Gongshan counties are located in the Nujiang River valley, and Lanping County is located in the Lancang River valley. The total population of the entire prefecture in 2010 was 534 300. Nujiang has abundant hydropower, mineral, biological and tourism resources, but its economic and social development has been limited due to restrictions with respect to location and transportation. In 2010, per-capita net income of farmers in Nujiang was the lowest of any prefecture in China at only 2005 CNY; moreover, the incidence of poverty in Nujiang is as high as 35%, 32 percentage points higher than the national average. The per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of the prefecture as a whole is only 65.19% of the per capita GDP of Yunnan and 34.23% of the per capita GDP of China. In addition, the urbanization rate of Nujiang was only 23.6%, and nearly 80% of the population was engaged in agricultural

Fig. 1 Location of the study area.

N

Tibet

Diqing

Lijiang

Dali

Baoshan

Location of Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province

YunnanProvince

Kunming

LegendCounty seatNational boundaryProvincial boundary

TributaryMajor riversPrefectural boundary

40km

0 10 20 60

FAN Jie, et al.: Aesthetic Perception of Residential Landscapes in Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province 159

production. Due to high mountains and steep slopes, limited arable land exists in the prefecture. In 2010, the reclamation coefficient was less than 4%, and land with a slope of more than 25° accounted for 76.6% of the total area of cultivated land.

The unique natural and cultural environments of Nujiang have generated unparalleled landscape resources (Fig. 2). First, Nujiang Canyon forms the core of the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage Site. Diverse protected regions in Nujiang account for 58.3% of the area. So the natural landscapes of Nujiang are plentiful and magnificent. Second, minority ethnic groups account for 87.65% of the total population of Nujiang. In particular, more than 10 ethnic groups, such as the Lisu, Bai, Nu, Dulong, and Yi peoples, have long resided here. Different ethnic groups feature a variety of cultures, and the groups in this prefecture have demonstrated tolerance of their neighbors’ different religions and have cohabitated in harmony for extended periods of time. Overall, this combination of natural and cultural landscapes is unique to Nujiang and can constitute not only a valuable resource for promoting economic and social development but also the foundation of long-term sustainable development.

3 Data and methods3.1 Data sourcesData were obtained from questionnaire surveys conducted among local residents in Nujiang in 2011. We distributed 1000 questionnaires, 250 copies for each county. At last 620 valid questionnaires were returned, with a recovery rate of 62%. The extremely inconvenient local traffic and the high cost of on-site surveys made it difficult to guarantee a random selection of participants. Therefore, we randomly chose 250 students in the largest high school within each county and provided them with a questionnaire to take home and complete with their parents. Participants were given one month to complete the questionnaire. This survey method meets the requirements of random sampling and reduced distribution costs. Statistical analysis indicated that the 620 questionnaires recovered covered all 29 towns across the

four counties and all major ethnic groups including Han, Lisu, Bai, Nu, Dulong, Pumi, Tibetan, and Yi.

The questionnaire included basic information based on the household unit, such as family size, life and livelihood. It also included questions around the subjective perception and expectation of the resident, including the understanding of current development status and future expectations, such as the aesthetic perceptions of residential landscapes.

Part of the data used for the spatial analysis in this study was obtained from the Data Center of Resources and Environment Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (2000), including digital elevation data, road network information, land use maps (1:100 000) and a rural residential (administrative village) and nature reserve distribution map for Nujiang.

3.2 Data processing

Many questionnaires contained some missing values, so we adopted the multiple imputation method in SPSS 19.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, USA) to substitute for missing data (Donald 1987). The multiple imputation tool in SPSS was used to complete this process through fully conditional specification, which is an iterative Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) multiple imputation procedure. In addition to the original raw data, the 10 imputation datasets generated were also used in the regression model.

Because different variables have different measurement units, scale variables were z-score normalized in this study to eliminate the impact of dimension:

(1)

where, x’ is normalized data, x is raw data, μ is the mean value of the samples, and δ is the standard deviation of the samples.

3.3 Variable selection

A logistic regression model was established through the maximum likelihood method, and the variables were introduced into the model using stepwise backward

Fig. 2 Natural and cultural landscapes in Nujiang.

a. Nujiang Grand Canyon landscape; b. Residence and settlement landscape of Bai ethnic group; c. “Farmland on the wall” landscape (sloped farmland with a degree above 25°)

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elimination to avoid multicollinearity among independent variables. The significance level was 0.10 in the variable elimination model. Subsequently, the 10 imputation datasets were compiled, and significant variables were selected using the ENTER method in SPSS. Considering that logistic regression model is a commonly used method, its formula equation is therefore omitted.

“The residential landscape is beautiful” was set as the

dependent variable in the regression model, which is a typical 0–1 dichotomous variable, after a few samples with neutral choice were excluded. Local residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their residential landscapes may result from the interaction of multiple factors (Ryan 1998; Xu et al. 2006; Winter et al. 2007), so according to data availability, a total of 21 factors were classified into four categories in our logistic regression model (Table 1). Data for “geographic

Table 1 The meaning and value of the examined variables.

Variable type Category Variable name Value and meaning of the variable Maximum value

Minimum value

Dependent variable

– The residential landscape is beautiful (y)

1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Independent variables

Geographic and landscape-related condition of the residence

Elevation of the administrative village (xa1)

The actual elevation of the administrative village (m)

3122 809

Administrative village located in the protected areas (xa2)

1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Distance from administrative village to county town (xa3)

The actual distance from the administrative village to the nearest county town along the road network (km)

100.17 0

The diversity of land usage around the administrative village (xa4)

The number of different types of land usage within 10 km of the administrative village

2 6

The standard deviation of the elevation around the administrative village (xa5)

Standard deviation (m) of elevation on 30m grids within 10 km around the administrative village, which reflects the magnitude of fluctuations in elevation

821 208

Residents’ psychological factors and expectations

The ecological environment has changed in recent years (xb1)

1=significant improvement; 2=some improvement; 3=no change; 4=some deterioration; 5=significant deterioration.

5 1

Whether tourism development has a positive impact (xb2)

1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Whether tourism development has a negative impact (xb3)

1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Wish to work outside the home (xb4) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Wish to live in the city (xb5) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Residents’ basic household situation

Ethnic minority (xc1) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Household size (xc2) Actual total number of family members 9 1Cash income from the previous year

(xc3)Actual household cash income in 2010

(CNY)50 000 0

Consuming firewood as fuel (xc4) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Access to electrical power (xc5) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Plant economic crops (xc6) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0residential house type (xc7) 1=thatched cottage; 2=civil tile-roofed

house or a wood-paneled house; 3=brick and wood tile-roofed house; 4=multistory building

4 1

Access to external information

Have a television at home (xd1) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Have a radio at home (xd2) 1=yes; 0=no 1 0Have migrant workers in the family

(xd3)1=yes; 0=no 1 0

Tourism development occurred near the residence (xd4)

1=yes; 0=no 1 0

FAN Jie, et al.: Aesthetic Perception of Residential Landscapes in Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province 161

and landscape-related condition of the residence” was derived via spatial analyses by digitizing validated questionnaires according to administrative village locations with ArcGIS 9.3 (ERSI, Redlands, CA, USA); data for other examined variables were obtained from the questionnaire.

4 Results4.1 Residents’ aesthetic perceptions of residential

landscapesA total of 75.81% of the respondents in the prefecture believe that their residential landscapes are beautiful. However, the proportion of positive responses to the questions about aesthetic perceptions varies among the four counties of the prefecture (Table 2). Lushui contains the governmental seat of Nujiang prefecture, and the aesthetic perceptions of local residents on residential landscapes are in accordance with the average level of aesthetic perceptions of the prefecture. Compared to the three counties in the Nujiang River valley, Lanping in the Lancang River valley features relatively flat terrain, including a greater proportion of land that is available for agriculture and various types of industrial development. The landscape of Lanping is less beautiful than the landscapes of the other three counties.

The questionnaire results confirm that among the four counties of the prefecture, Lanping includes the lowest proportion of residents who believe that their residential landscapes are beautiful. Fugong and Gongshan are located in the northern part of Nujiang. These counties exhibit the most obstructed traffic and lowest economic development in the prefecture, but the landscapes of these two counties are most representative of the typical mountains and canyons of Nujiang, and these two counties feature the most abundant tourism resources in the prefecture. Residents of these two counties have the most positive perceptions regarding the beauty of their residential landscapes.

Variation in the perceptions towards residential landscapes across the four counties is consistent with commonly recognized differences among these counties with respect to the aesthetic values of landscape resources, and intuitive feelings of the authors.

4.2 Factors affecting aesthetic perceptions

Regression results from the 10 imputation datasets (as Table 3) were tested for goodness-of-fit using both the Hosmer and Lemeshow’s test and the likelihood ratio test. The Hosmer and Lemeshow’s test showed that levels of

Table 2 Aesthetic perception of residential landscapes by residents in Nujiang.

County nameThe number of respondents who

believe that their residential landscapes are beautiful

TotalThe proportion of respondents who believe that their residential landscapes are beautiful

(%)Lushui 101 133 75.94Lanping 69 130 53.08Fugong 130 162 80.25Gongshan 170 195 87.18Total for Nujiang 470 620 75.81

Table 3 Factors affecting aesthetic perceptions.

Note: ***, ** and * represent at 1%, 5% and 10% significance level respectively. † This parameter is set to zero because it is redundant.

Category Variable B S.E. Exp (B) Sig.Geographic and landscape-related

condition of the residenceAdministrative village located in the protected areas (xa2) 1.578*** 0.527 4.846 0.003 Distance from administrative village to county town (xa3) –0.226* 0.127 0.798 0.076 The standard deviation of the elevation around the

administrative village (xa5)0.470*** 0.103 1.599 0.000

Residents’ psychological factors and expectations

The ecological environment has changed in recent years (xb1)

(x=1) –0.110 0.406 0.896 0.786 (x=2) –0.083 0.345 0.920 0.809 (x=3) –1.025** 0.505 0.359 0.043 (x=4) –0.596* 0.312 0.551 0.057 (x=5) 0† – – –

Whether tourism development has a negative impact (xb3) –0.439** 0.215 0.645 0.042 Wish to live in the city (xb5) –0.656*** 0.220 0.519 0.003

Residents’ basic household situation

Residential house type (xc7) (x=1) 0.822 0.533 2.276 0.124 (x=2) 0.987** 0.444 2.684 0.027 (x=3) 0.987** 0.425 2.683 0.021 (x=4) 0† - - -

Access to external information Have a television at home (xc1) 0.623* 0.334 1.864 0.063

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significance of the 10 groups of variables were greater than 0.1. The likelihood ratio test results demonstrated that the significance of the 10 groups of variables were all less than 1%. These results indicate that variables in the regression result are statistically significant and the model adequately reflects factors that affect residents’ perceptions of their residential landscapes.

4.3 An analysis of influential factors

Eight variables were found to influence local residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their residential landscapes. The remaining 13 variables were excluded from the regression model.

Among the five variables in the category “geographic and landscape-related condition of the residence”, three variables have influence: administrative village located in the protected areas, distance from administrative village to county town, and the standard deviation of the elevation around the administrative village. First, the probability that residents will believe their landscapes are beautiful is 4.85 times greater for residents who live in protected areas than for residents who live outside of protected areas. This phenomenon indicates that through reasonable and effective protective measures, protected areas can significantly improve local residents’ aesthetic perceptions. Second, if the distance from a resident’s administrative village to the nearest county town increases by one unit (46.52 km, as derived from equation (1)), the probability that the resident will consider the landscape to be beautiful decreases by 20.23%. This effect may be because in administrative villages that are distant from county towns, there are relatively adverse natural environmental conditions and low production, also the living standards for residents are relatively low which may produce a negative cognitive impact on residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their residential

landscapes. Third, the standard deviation of the elevation within 10 km around a resident’s administrative village can reflect the extent to which the local terrain undulates. A higher standard deviation reflects larger terrain undulation (Sui et al. 2010) and is associated with a greater visual impact of the landscape. The results indicated that if the standard deviation of this elevation increases by one unit (approximately 718.59 m, as derived from equation (1)), the probability that residents will regard their landscapes as beautiful increases by 59.93%.

Among the five variables in the category “residents psychological factors and expectations”, three factors: the ecological environment has changed in recent years, whether tourism development has a negative impact, and wish to live in the city, influence the dependent variable. Residents’ impressions of the changes in their ecological environments will impact their aesthetic perceptions of the landscape. In particular, a belief that the ecological environment is deteriorating will negatively impact residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their local landscapes. For instance, the probability of regarding the local landscape as beautiful is 44.89% lower for residents who believe that the ecological environment has experienced “some deterioration” than for other residents. Aesthetic perceptions of the landscape may be also negatively impacted by the adverse effects of tourism development near a resident. The probability of regarding the local landscape as beautiful is 35.51% lower for residents who believe that “tourism development has a negative impact” than for other residents. A desire to live in the city will significantly worsen residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their current residential landscapes; in particular, beliefs that the local landscape is beautiful are 48.10% lower among residents that want to move to the city, compared to other residents.

Among the seven variables in the category “residents’

Fig. 3 Types of residential housing in Nujiang.

a. Thatched cottage; b. Wood-paneled house; c. Brick and wood tile-roofed house; d. Multistory building

FAN Jie, et al.: Aesthetic Perception of Residential Landscapes in Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province 163

cultural landscape of diverse ethnic culture, have interacted and coexisted over geography and time. This kind of combined large-scale landscape is a valuable resource for local development and once destroyed, resources such as these are difficult to restore. The study concluded that improving local residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their residential landscapes will encourage residents to actively participate in the protection of local natural and cultural landscapes and thereby promote the long-term sustainable development in Nujiang. Therefore we propose the following policies and measures to further promote landscape protection and regional development in Nujiang:

(1) Strictly protect existing types of protection areas and ecological environments from improper tourism development and construction. Create a landscape protection area that is dedicated to protect the unique natural and cultural landscape of Nujiang.

(2) Improve housing conditions and living standards of local residents in Nujiang and gradually implement reasonable and effective measures to improve the residents’ sense of identity and pride with respect to their local landscapes. For example, the exterior styles of new buildings could be redesigned to improve the extent to which these styles are in accordance with local geographic and cultural characteristics.

(3) Gradually increase the level of urbanization in Nujiang. This increase could be implemented by promoting the development of small towns through intensive, economical, and compact urbanization processes to prevent the damage to local landscapes due to improper urbanization. Selected populations should also be encouraged to migrate to cities or towns outside Nujiang as this will reduce pressure on local resources and the environment and help improve local residents’ aesthetic perceptions of their residential landscapes.

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