Why do people value landscape? survey findings
Do you ever wish you could lay your hands on research data
to prove that protecting the landscape has value?
Well, now you can!
Natural England, MORI, the World Health Organisation, DEFRA and CPRE
have all published serious research that you can quote in your arguments.
A recently published report commissioned by Natural England has come up with some interesting findings about people's experience of the landscape.
According to Experiencing Landscapes: Capturing the Cultural Services and Experiential Qualities of Landscape, people felt that one of the main threats to the landscape continuing to 'look like it has always looked' was housing development.
Other threats were changes in working patterns, such as commuting, and the perceived loss of village life.
But it is the tranquillity and calming effect of the landscape which underlies many of the benefits people said they gain from the countryside.
Switching off
The landscape is a place to relax and to switch off from work pressures and daily routines. This message came across clearly in all the research carried out for the study.
The researchers were impressed by 'the frequency and extent to which escape from stress was voiced as the issue, more so than relaxation per se'.
Linked to relaxation, the study also picked up another point strongly emphasised by participants, that of quality time.
Many of them referred to the ability to switch off and gain a closer rapport with friends or family when walking, visiting or experiencing the landscape in some way. The researchers suggested this should be recognised as a significant benefit from experiencing the countryside.
Consistent findings Back to top
This ties in closely with CPRE's work on tranquillity.
We define it in terms of the quality of calm experienced in places with mainly natural features and activities, free from disturbance from man-made ones.
In a survey by the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, tranquillity was identified by 58% of respondents as an enjoyable aspect of the countryside and was the most common reason for visiting it.
A 2004 MORI poll found that 49% of visitors to the countryside go there seeking peace and quiet.
Time and again researchers have found that tranquillity is integral to our countryside experience.
CPRE's research on the level of noise and visual intrusion for different types of rural and urban areas shows that over the period from the 1960s to 2007 the level of intrusion - disturbance to tranquillity - has grown far more in rural than urban areas. The rural area classified as disturbed by noise and visual intrusion has increased more than three-fold over the period, whereas in urban areas it has increased by 40%.
According to the World Health Organisation, mental illness such as depression is likely to be the primary cause of ill health by 2020. There is convincing evidence that the natural environment can help people to cope with stress and enhance psychological well-being.
A review of over 100 studies showed that the primary reasons for visiting natural environment include escape from the stress of urban areas and the experience of tranquillity and solitude.
In a 2004 study, 16-21 year olds under stress from their studies, family and personal problems cited going outdoors to seek privacy and space as one of their most common stress-relieving strategies. Other studies have found exposure to nature helps people recover from drug and alcohol addictions.
Calm is a cultural service
In Natural England's report, calm was considered to be 'an important cultural service and one that was sought out by people needing to find space and tranquillity'.
It's not surprising that rural areas rely on their tranquillity to attract visitors.
Government data on the economic impact of rural tourism in the five-year Rural Strategy 2004 from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs suggest that rural tourism nationally supports around 380,000 jobs and 25,000 small and micro businesses, and contributes around £13.8 billion annually to the economy.
The search for tranquillity accounts for 49% of this, thus supporting 186,200 jobs and 12,250 small businesses and contributing £6.76 billion a year to the economy.
Natural England's report shows that in England today rural landscapes offer 'a refuge from the pressures of modern life, an opportunity for time to stand still, for contemplation, a re-balancing, stress relief and a window on more healthy lifestyles'.
Even mundane or ordinary landscapes 'seem to deliver experiences that are valued by members of the public. People seem to be able to seek out features in the landscape that deliver emotional or spiritual experiences to them'.
The researchers were struck by 'the extent and emphatic nature of the feedback relating to quality time, relationships and de-stressing', indicating 'a very significant tonic that society is seeking from the landscape and the outdoor environment.'
The important thing about transquillity is that it's free
- but do we value it enough?
This recent research reiterates that people consistently say the quality of the landscape is fundamental to experiencing tranquillity.
Reproduced with permission from the Winter 2009 issue of CPRE's member newsletter Fieldwork.
Fiona Cowan
12 February 2010 Back to top