Analysis of the Role of Visual Comfort Variables and Their Relation with the Sense of Place (A Case Study: Yazd, Iran)

Document Type : Research article

Authors

1 Associate Professor of Geography and Urban Planning, Yazd University, Iran

2 PhD Student of Geography and Urban Planning, Yazd University, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
Understanding physical elements, tangible characteristics of the environment, their meanings and messages is of importance in considering the relationship between man and environment. Based on what was mentioned, much attention should be given to the sense of place, the place attachment, and the visual comfort level within the study area when it comes to achieving the concepts and different aspects of sustainable visual comfort and sense of place. In light of this, concepts such as visual comfort and sense of place are of essential elements and components in urban spaces. There is a need to determine their two-way relationship according to the type and manner of looking and understanding the appearance and function of the elements of the urban structure and the magnitude of the effects of each constructive component in the creation and construction of each other. Given the importance of this issue, great emphasis should be placed on it from the perspective of environmental psychology in architecture. For this purpose, after evaluating the indicators of visual comfort and sense of place, this research attempted to identify the level of relationship between the variables of visual comfort, including the effects of color and light, facade and architecture, etc., and the variables of sense of place, including security, readability, sense of belonging, etc. in Yazd. On this basis, the study seeks to answer the following two questions: What is the status Yazd in the indicators of visual comfort and sense of place? What is the relationship between visual comfort and the sense of place?
Methodology
This study is an applied research, and it is a descriptive and survey study in terms of method and nature. The methods of data collection were surveys, observations, and document analysis. A simple random sampling method was used to obtain a representative sample of the study area.
Results and discussion
To measure and evaluate the indicators of visual comfort and their relation with the sense of place in Yazd city, we used the ranking technique of MAPPAC and the Correlation Coefficient of phi and Cramer's V. According to the results, the respondents pointed out that factors such as the architectural quality of buildings in the first place, and then lighting quality, the quality of the facade of buildings, the color, the quality of pavements, the extensions of the buildings and finally the vegetation are the most significant factor affecting the visual comfort of people. This ranking reflects the unique tourism features of Yazd, extraordinary architectures, wind towers, minarets, domes, and old brick buildings. Moreover, the tissue and the specific architecture make the city one of the most prominent examples of architecture in a warm and dry climate in the world. The other features of this city are its suitability to the needs and climate-cultural conditions of people, besides the special beauty of its architecture.
In the center of each neighborhood, there are usually baths, bazaars, water reservoirs, mosques, Hussainias, lards, small workshops, waterways (to access the Qantas), many of which are still alive. Meanwhile, the city is grappling with shortages of green spaces and water scarcity due to its location in a dry desert area. Furthermore, sense of place, social security, existence of public spaces, social interactions, readability, quality of urban furniture, the safety of physical elements, respectively, are the most important factors affecting the sense of place. Therefore, it can be concluded that Yazd has preserved the culture and many of its traditional elements to this day. As a result, it consists of the paradox of tradition and modernity.
 According to the Correlation Coefficient of Phi and Cramer's V, it was revealed that there is a significant relationship between visual comfort variables and the variables of sense of belonging in Yazd (at 95% level). Therefore, it can be suggested that the more visual comfort variables, the more the sense of place is affected and vice versa.
Conclusion
According to the previous studies and the findings of the current study, the results showed some facts about the issue. In the surveys, 400 people were questioned, each of which had responses according to their different condition. According to the technique of MAPPAC, interviewees suggested that the indicator of the architectural quality of buildings has the most weight, it is the most influential factor affecting the visual comfort of people while the index of vegetation because of its relative lowest weight is considered as the least influential factor. Furthermore, the higher weight of social security has made it as the primary factor affecting the sense of place while the lowest weight of the safety of the physical elements has made it as the least significant factor affecting people's sense of place attachment.  
In the Correlation Coefficient of Phi and Cramer's V, it emerged that there is a relation between visual comfort and sense of place due to a correlation between their constructive components. The intensity of this relationship can be determined by identifying the extent of the relation between the constructive components of visual comfort, including the effects of color and light, facade and the architecture of the buildings and etc. and the elements of sense of place, including security, readability, sense of belonging.
However, the amount of this correlation and its intensity vary from one variable to another, and there is no complete correlation (a correlation coefficient equal to one) between the two variables. Also, among the constructive elements of the two former concepts, the variables of suitable urban furniture, architectural quality, and urban building facades had the most relationships with visual comfort and sense of place concepts in Yazd city.

Keywords


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