Usages, perceptions and preferences of wild and traditional park types in Chinese mega cities: A case study from Shanghai

As cities increasingly embrace high-density development, rewilding has been discussed recently as a landscape design/management strategy that uses spontaneous natural process to improve urban biodiversity, ecosystem services, and the mental health and well-being of urban dwellers. However, in comparison with traditional parks (e.g., manicured lawns and orderly plantings), the wild parks (e.g., natural and wilder characteristics) evoke fresh debate, such as calling into question their safety and recreational usages. To address this debate, this paper investigated residents’ usages, perceptions, and preferences of wild and traditional parks according to five park attributes (i.e., Biodiversity, Facilities, Woodlands, Maintenance, and Seasonal views) in Chinese mega cities. The study was conducted in Shanghai using focus groups (N = 34) and conjoint analysis (N = 133). Our results show that both park types served as important green spaces for relaxation and were generally perceived as safe in the densely populated urban core of Shanghai. The wild park type was more frequently used for walking and nature recreation, while the traditional type tended to be used for active physical activities and social contact. The wild park type was valued for its rich flora and fauna, providing restorative benefits and place attachment, while the traditional type was appreciated for its facilities and neatness. Environmental interventions that would make wild parks more attractive included improving maintenance levels, incorporating recreation facilities, and managing woodlands to keep them more open. The research provides a fine-grain picture of wild and traditional parks from a user experience perspective in Chinese mega cities, including their nuanced effects on human health and well-being.