An Analysis of Visual Behavior Characteristics of Naturalistic Gardens Using Eye-Tracking

Background and objective: As the understanding of biodiversity and sustainable ecological landscapes has increased, public interest in naturalistic landscapes has grown. However, naturalistic landscapes are still often seen as messy or even unsafe, and research findings on public perceptions remain inconsistent. The purposes of this study were to analyze public’s perception of naturalistic landscapes in Korea and to explore the value of naturalistic landscapes. Research on naturalistic landscapes in Korea remains limited. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyze public’s perception of naturalistic landscapes in Korea, and explored the value of naturalistic landscapes. Methods: This study explores the perceived value of naturalistic landscapes in Korea in terms of ecological value, aesthetics, and preference for naturalistic and formal landscapes. An eye-tracking experiment was conducted to investigate the visual patterns of participants and differences in their attention toward the landscape elements of naturalistic and formal landscapes. Forty participants evaluated six images (three naturalistic landscapes and three formal landscapes) containing six elements (trees, shrubs, flowers, water, buildings, and hardscapes). Results: The results revealed significant differences in perception between naturalistic and formal landscapes. Although participants were more familiar with formal landscapes, they had a higher perception of the ecological value, aesthetics, and preference for naturalistic landscapes. The eye-tracking results showed that the visual patterns were relatively dispersed across the naturalistic landscapes, while they were more concentrated in the formal landscapes. Participants spent more time looking at shrubs and flowers in the naturalistic landscapes. In the formal landscapes, attention was drawn more to hardscapes, buildings, and water. Conclusion: These findings suggest that naturalistic landscapes not only benefit biodiversity and ecological sustainability but also align with public aesthetics. There is thus a need to consider incorporating more naturalistic landscapes into urban landscape design and to explore natural planting methods and compositional schemes that highlight their value.