Version 1
: Received: 26 September 2024 / Approved: 26 September 2024 / Online: 26 September 2024 (14:48:36 CEST)
How to cite:
Sant’Anna, M. V.; Zhou, W. Assessing the Appropriation of Space in Urban Green Spaces Before the COVID-19 Pandemic: Three Case Studies in Downtown Shanghai. Preprints2024, 2024092120. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.2120.v1
Sant’Anna, M. V.; Zhou, W. Assessing the Appropriation of Space in Urban Green Spaces Before the COVID-19 Pandemic: Three Case Studies in Downtown Shanghai. Preprints 2024, 2024092120. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.2120.v1
Sant’Anna, M. V.; Zhou, W. Assessing the Appropriation of Space in Urban Green Spaces Before the COVID-19 Pandemic: Three Case Studies in Downtown Shanghai. Preprints2024, 2024092120. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.2120.v1
APA Style
Sant’Anna, M. V., & Zhou, W. (2024). Assessing the Appropriation of Space in Urban Green Spaces Before the COVID-19 Pandemic: Three Case Studies in Downtown Shanghai. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.2120.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Sant’Anna, M. V. and Wuzhong Zhou. 2024 "Assessing the Appropriation of Space in Urban Green Spaces Before the COVID-19 Pandemic: Three Case Studies in Downtown Shanghai" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.2120.v1
Abstract
This study investigates user behavior in urban green spaces (UGS) in downtown Shanghai prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. UGS are essential public infrastructure, contributing to urban sustainability, quality of life, and social cohesion. Although widely studied, there remains a gap in urban studies and environmental behavior research regarding UGS use from the perspective of space appropriation. This study addresses this by analyzing user demographics, frequency, and spatial activity patterns to assess how different forms of space use can be evaluated across varying levels of appropriation. Using a mixed-methods design, non-participant observation and behavior mapping were conducted across three comprehensive parks in Shanghai, divided into nine observation zones. Data were analyzed using the Pandas library in Python 3.6, descriptive statistics, and qualitative coding. Findings revealed sixty distinct activity types, predominance of elderly male users, absence of teenagers, and activity peaks in the early morning and late after-noon. Structured patterns of engagement suggest a soft to moderate level of appropriation. This research underscores the effectiveness of observational methods, validates appropriation as an analytical category, and emphasizes the importance of structured classification systems for improving understanding of UGS use and its societal role.
Keywords
use of space; appropriation of space; behavior mapping; urban green space
Subject
Social Sciences, Urban Studies and Planning
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
