Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany
Understanding public needs is crucial for effective management and planning of urban green spaces (UGS). UGS offer cultural ecosystem services (CES) that enhance human wellbeing. However, CES are challenging to measure, and vary across cultures, limiting cross-cultural research. This study examines...
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Elsevier
2025-11-01
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| Series: | Basic and Applied Ecology |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000611 |
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| author | Jaewon Son Yunjeong Lee Caroline Kramer Somidh Saha |
| author_facet | Jaewon Son Yunjeong Lee Caroline Kramer Somidh Saha |
| author_sort | Jaewon Son |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Understanding public needs is crucial for effective management and planning of urban green spaces (UGS). UGS offer cultural ecosystem services (CES) that enhance human wellbeing. However, CES are challenging to measure, and vary across cultures, limiting cross-cultural research. This study examines public perceptions of CES from UGS in Suwon, Korea, and Karlsruhe, Germany, through a map-based PPGIS questionnaire. Respondents were urban residents in both cities, recruited through a combination of online outreach, local postings, and snowball sampling between July and September 2023. Karlsruhe residents visited UGS more frequently and spent more time there both before and after COVID-19 than Suwon residents. Most Suwon residents favored the nearest green spaces, while Karlsruhe residents preferred UGS farther from their homes. In Suwon, higher income was linked to a lower evaluation of biodiversity importance. Age and gender influenced the evaluation of biodiversity importance in both cities. Younger people visited UGS more often than older people after COVID-19 in both cities. In Karlsruhe, female respondents visited UGS more frequently than male respondents, whereas in Suwon, male showed a higher frequency. However, female respondents in Karlsruhe spent more time in UGS than males, while there was no statistically significant difference in Suwon. Education level was significant only in Suwon, where individuals with university education spent more time in UGS after COVID-19 than those without. These findings reflect how cultural and socio-demographic factors shape human-nature interactions, supporting theoretical perspectives such as the biophilia hypothesis, social ecology, and environmental psychology. Integrating these interdisciplinary insights into UGS planning can help create inclusive, culturally responsive, and ecologically meaningful urban environments. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d92366a1a9544621b9d3c063fcd659d7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1439-1791 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-11-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Basic and Applied Ecology |
| spelling | doaj-art-d92366a1a9544621b9d3c063fcd659d72025-08-24T05:11:36ZengElsevierBasic and Applied Ecology1439-17912025-11-0188325110.1016/j.baae.2025.08.002Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and GermanyJaewon Son0Yunjeong Lee1Caroline Kramer2Somidh Saha3Research Group Sylvanus, Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlstr. 11, Karlsruhe 76133, Germany; Corresponding author.Research Group Sylvanus, Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlstr. 11, Karlsruhe 76133, GermanyInstitute of Geography and Geoecology (IfGG), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, GermanyResearch Group Sylvanus, Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlstr. 11, Karlsruhe 76133, Germany; Institute of Geography and Geoecology (IfGG), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, GermanyUnderstanding public needs is crucial for effective management and planning of urban green spaces (UGS). UGS offer cultural ecosystem services (CES) that enhance human wellbeing. However, CES are challenging to measure, and vary across cultures, limiting cross-cultural research. This study examines public perceptions of CES from UGS in Suwon, Korea, and Karlsruhe, Germany, through a map-based PPGIS questionnaire. Respondents were urban residents in both cities, recruited through a combination of online outreach, local postings, and snowball sampling between July and September 2023. Karlsruhe residents visited UGS more frequently and spent more time there both before and after COVID-19 than Suwon residents. Most Suwon residents favored the nearest green spaces, while Karlsruhe residents preferred UGS farther from their homes. In Suwon, higher income was linked to a lower evaluation of biodiversity importance. Age and gender influenced the evaluation of biodiversity importance in both cities. Younger people visited UGS more often than older people after COVID-19 in both cities. In Karlsruhe, female respondents visited UGS more frequently than male respondents, whereas in Suwon, male showed a higher frequency. However, female respondents in Karlsruhe spent more time in UGS than males, while there was no statistically significant difference in Suwon. Education level was significant only in Suwon, where individuals with university education spent more time in UGS after COVID-19 than those without. These findings reflect how cultural and socio-demographic factors shape human-nature interactions, supporting theoretical perspectives such as the biophilia hypothesis, social ecology, and environmental psychology. Integrating these interdisciplinary insights into UGS planning can help create inclusive, culturally responsive, and ecologically meaningful urban environments.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000611Human-nature interactionsHuman wellbeingCross-cultural studyUrban green spacesParticipatory mappingCultural ecosystem services |
| spellingShingle | Jaewon Son Yunjeong Lee Caroline Kramer Somidh Saha Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany Basic and Applied Ecology Human-nature interactions Human wellbeing Cross-cultural study Urban green spaces Participatory mapping Cultural ecosystem services |
| title | Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany |
| title_full | Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany |
| title_fullStr | Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany |
| title_full_unstemmed | Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany |
| title_short | Residents’ perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces: A comparative study of Korea and Germany |
| title_sort | residents perceptions of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces a comparative study of korea and germany |
| topic | Human-nature interactions Human wellbeing Cross-cultural study Urban green spaces Participatory mapping Cultural ecosystem services |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000611 |
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