Residents’ Perception-Based Typology of Forest Landscape: A Case Study of Changsha, Central China

Abstract

Forest management typically concentrates on biophysical phenomena, while social dimensions are relatively neglected in China. This manuscript aims to develop a typology of forest landscapes based on the individual perception in a cultural context of China with a random sample of 210 residents by utilizing the landscape image sketching technique. The results demonstrated that the typology of forest landscapes could be classified into ‘a recreational space,’ ‘an idealized homeland,’ ‘an untouched forest,’ and ‘a utopian forest.’ These types of forest landscapes suggest new ways of working with the public to achieve management goals of protecting and improving forest education and experience.