IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i4p2018-d746946.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Urban Parks as Perceived by City Residents with Mobility Difficulties: A Qualitative Study with In-Depth Interviews

Author

Listed:
  • Magdalena Wojnowska-Heciak

    (Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Marzena Suchocka

    (Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Magdalena Błaszczyk

    (Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Magdalena Muszyńska

    (Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland)

Abstract

Urban green spaces make an invaluable contribution to the health and well-being of all city residents. Therefore, urban park quality and accessibility are crucial factors in stimulating physical and mental health benefits. This study aimed to assess the quality of urban parks and their accessibility as reported by people with mobility difficulties (seniors, blind and partially sighted people). Four key features of a place (accessibility and linkages, comfort and image, uses and activities and sociability) were considered in an in-depth-interviews (IDI) and “walk-and-talk” interviews. Study results indicate a problem of accessibility of urban parks for people with mobility difficulties (uneven gravel surfaces). However, non-physical aspects of park visits (social activities, cultural events, place branding) were reported as essential factors in explaining the motivation for park visits. Despite individual preferences, experience or reported difficulties, all respondents’ attitudes towards park trips were positive. Therefore, we assume that accessibility is more than just physical comfort. Cultural and social activities play an important role in motivating people with a disability to visit a park.

Suggested Citation

  • Magdalena Wojnowska-Heciak & Marzena Suchocka & Magdalena Błaszczyk & Magdalena Muszyńska, 2022. "Urban Parks as Perceived by City Residents with Mobility Difficulties: A Qualitative Study with In-Depth Interviews," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-19, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:4:p:2018-:d:746946
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/4/2018/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/4/2018/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Zenker, Sebastian & Braun, Erik & Petersen, Sibylle, 2017. "Branding the destination versus the place: The effects of brand complexity and identification for residents and visitors," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 15-27.
    2. Taylor, Zbigniew & Józefowicz, Iwona, 2012. "Intra-urban daily mobility of disabled people for recreational and leisure purposes," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 155-172.
    3. Marzena Suchocka & Paweł Jankowski & Magdalena Błaszczyk, 2019. "Perception of Urban Trees by Polish Tree Professionals vs. Nonprofessionals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-20, January.
    4. Magdalena Wojnowska-Heciak, 2019. "The Naturalness of the Vistula Riverbank’s Landscape: Warsaw Inhabitants’ Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-28, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ziqian Bao & Yihang Bai & Tao Geng, 2023. "Examining Spatial Inequalities in Public Green Space Accessibility: A Focus on Disadvantaged Groups in England," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-22, September.
    2. Magdalena Wojnowska-Heciak & Jakub Heciak & Adam Kłak, 2022. "Concrete Paving Slabs for Comfort of Movement of Mobility-Impaired Pedestrians—A Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-17, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Edison Jair Duque Oliva & Javier A. Sánchez-Torres, 2023. "Building a University City Brand: Colombian University Students’ Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-24, April.
    2. Siwarit Pongsakornrungsilp & Pimlapas Pongsakornrungsilp & Theeranuch Pusaksrikit & Pimmada Wichasin & Vikas Kumar, 2021. "Co-Creating a Sustainable Regional Brand from Multiple Sub-Brands: The Andaman Tourism Cluster of Thailand," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-23, August.
    3. Hui, Ling Chui & Jim, C.Y., 2022. "Urban-greenery demands are affected by perceptions of ecosystem services and disservices, and socio-demographic and environmental-cultural factors," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    4. Anwar Sadat Shimul, 2022. "Brand attachment: a review and future research," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 29(4), pages 400-419, July.
    5. Andrea Parra-Saldívar & Sebastián Abades & Juan L. Celis-Diez & Stefan Gelcich, 2020. "Exploring Perceived Well-Being from Urban Parks: Insights from a Megacity in Latin America," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-14, September.
    6. Magdalena Grebosz-Krawczyk, 2021. "Place branding (r)evolution: the management of the smart city’s brand," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 17(1), pages 93-104, March.
    7. Tedds, Lindsay M. & Cameron, Anna & Khanal, Mukesh & Crisan, Daria, 2021. "Why Existing Regulatory Frameworks Fail in the Short-term Rental Market: Exploring the Role of Regulatory Fractures," MPRA Paper 106712, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Anna Źróbek-Sokolnik & Piotr Dynowski & Sabina Źróbek, 2021. "Preservation and Restoration of Roadside Tree Alleys in Line with Sustainable Development Principles—Mission (Im)possible?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-17, August.
    9. Łukasz Piątek & Magdalena Wojnowska-Heciak, 2020. "Multicase Study Comparison of Different Types of Flood-Resilient Buildings (Elevated, Amphibious, and Floating) at the Vistula River in Warsaw, Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-20, November.
    10. Chunying Wen & Yingying Wu & Caroline Rosemary Whitfield, 2019. "Measuring the economic effectiveness of place advertising in China," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 15(4), pages 257-273, December.
    11. Scarborough, William J. & Crabbe, Rowena, 2021. "Place brands across U.S. cities and growth in local high-technology sectors," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 70-85.
    12. Marc Compte-Pujol & Jordi San Eugenio-Vela & Joan Frigola-Reig, 2018. "Key elements in defining Barcelona’s place values: the contribution of residents’ perceptions from an internal place branding perspective," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 14(4), pages 245-259, November.
    13. Kwon, Kihyun & Akar, Gulsah, 2022. "People with disabilities and use of public transit: The role of neighborhood walkability," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    14. Magnoni, Fanny & Valette-Florence, Pierre & De Barnier, Virginie, 2021. "Modeling the effects of place heritage and place experience on residents’ behavioral intentions toward a city: A mediation analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 428-442.
    15. Foroudi, Pantea & Cuomo, Maria Teresa & Foroudi, Mohammad M. & Katsikeas, Constantine S. & Gupta, Suraksha, 2020. "Linking identity and heritage with image and a reputation for competition," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 317-325.
    16. Mike Peters & Chung-Shing Chan & Anita Legerer, 2018. "Local Perception of Impact-Attitudes-Actions towards Tourism Development in the Urlaubsregion Murtal in Austria," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-28, July.
    17. Shulin Lai & Yuquan Zhou & Yuan Yuan, 2021. "Associations between Community Cohesion and Subjective Wellbeing of the Elderly in Guangzhou, China—A Cross-Sectional Study Based on the Structural Equation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(3), pages 1-23, January.
    18. Bernd F. Reitsamer & Alexandra Brunner-Sperdin, 2021. "It’s all about the brand: place brand credibility, place attachment, and consumer loyalty," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(3), pages 291-301, May.
    19. Marija Opačak & Erda Wang, 2019. "Estimating Willingness to Pay for a Future Recreational Park Atop the Current Jakuševec Landfill in Zagreb, Croatia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-16, October.
    20. Beatriz Casais & Patrícia Monteiro, 2019. "Residents’ involvement in city brand co-creation and their perceptions of city brand identity: a case study in Porto," Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 15(4), pages 229-237, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:4:p:2018-:d:746946. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.