GROUP-DIFFERENCES IN THE AESTHETIC EVALUATION OF NATURE DEVELOPMENT PLANS - A MULTILEVEL APPROACH

The study presented here addresses theoretical, methodological and pra ctical aspects of the issue of group differences in the aesthetic eval uation of natural landscapes. Beauty ratings of an agrarian landscape and five computer simulations of nature development plans in this land scape were collected in a field study. Three different user groups, ea ch consisting of 28 respondents, were distinguished: farmers, resident s (nonfarmers) and visiting cyclists. Ratings on predictor variables w ere given by the respondents themselves, as well as by a group of 12 e xperts on nature development. Results of multilevel statistical analys is show differences in beauty ratings of nature development plans as a function of user background. Beauty ratings of residents and visitors were positively related to typical characteristics of nature developm ent plans (wetness, roughness and noncultivatedness), while farmers' b eauty ratings were negatively related to these characteristics. In eac h group, beauty ratings were positively related to perceived complexit y, coherence, mystery and biodiversity. However, perceptions of these characteristics were found to be highly subjective. Possible explanati ons of the user-group differences in terms of background variables suc h as familiarity and education level are discussed, as well as implica tions for theoretical and management concerns. (C) 1998 Academic Press .