Investigating the value of urban living
Study report
1. Purpose, methods, and organizational structure for the study
Organizational structure of the study
This study is conducted by the following team members:
Chief researcher
Ryuzo Ohno, Professor, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Doctor of Engineering
Research planning and analysis
Naoko Wakabayashi, CEO of Living Environment Studio ACT, Doctor of Engineering
Masashi Soeda, Grand planner of LLP Human Environment Design Laboratory, Doctor of Engineering
Research study analysis
Nagisa Tatsumi, Writer and Marketing planner
Koji Sugawara, Living Environment Studio ACT
Pre-study
Hajime Enomoto, Director of the Urban Environment Planning Department of Yomiko Advertising, Inc
Hiroyuki Kakinuma, Urban Environment Planning Department of Yomiko Advertising, Inc.
Akiko Tsuruta, Urban Environment Planning Department of Yomiko Advertising, Inc.
Yumi Kato, Pistaccio Inc.
Mayuko Koga, Environmental Planning Laboratory Inc.
Research project coordinators
Hitoshi Nakamura, LLP Human Environment Design Laboratory
Masashi Soeda, LLP Human Environment Design Laboratory
Ichiro Miyazaki, Environmental Planning Laboratory Inc.
Research supervisor
Shinichi Sentouda, Chief researcher of Research Institute for High-Life
(1) Purpose of the study
The purpose of this study is to identify the kinds of value that city dwellers associate with their urban lives. We will attempt to find out "what" kinds of value they find in their cities or "what parts" of their cities they feel are valuable.
Customarily, when assessing the livability of a city, evaluations are made based mainly on "service" factors, such as convenience for shopping and commuting or the sufficiency of public facilities. These evaluation factors can be standardized and indexed to some extent and are reflected in real estate value. However, "service" is not the only reason why urban residents live in cities; rather, these residents seem to find more value in intangible factors related to enriching their quality of life, such as being able to relax at a nearby park, having neighborhood stores where they can meet friends, and safe environments for their children to play. These kinds of value cannot necessarily be measured by real estate price. Unlike convenience factors, which can be quantified even by an outsider, these kinds of value are latent and are perceived only by those who have lived in the city for some time. We believe that cities with such latent value can lead people to develop emotional attachments to their environment, leading to the desire to continue living in those cities.
Given the difficulty of measuring such kinds of value, there is no straightforward way to draw clear answers from residents. Therefore, our first step is to conduct a survey among urban residents in multiple areas throughout Tokyo. We will ask them "what" kinds of value they find in their city or "what parts" of the city they feel are valuable. The answers will be provided as free responses (keywords). In this way, we will be able to grasp a general idea of what kinds of value are appreciated in specific kinds of city. At the same time, in order to analyze the linkage between people and the keywords, we will also ask them about their degree of attachment to the city, their intentions of settling down (whether or not they would like to reside there permanently), their degree of interest, and their lifestyle values.
Based on the survey results, we will assess the relationships between the "city", its "people", and the "value and values associated with residential environments". We will analyze and investigate various factors, such as triggers of emotional attachments to the city or factors causing long-term residents to lose their attachment to the city, with the aim of offering guidelines for better residential environments.
(2) Method of study
This study consists of two parts.
1) Pre-study of the kinds of value perceived by urban residents
There have been several studies involving assessments of residential environments or surveys on residential preferences conducted in the past. Before proceeding with our study, we will study these previous reports and examine the findings obtained through lectures given by the researchers. Our objective is to establish a clear perspective and hypothesis for the present study.
We will also try to obtain an accurate picture of urban residents through a report prepared by an analyst with a concrete viewpoint on what specific points of urban life are appealing to those residents. What we learn here will be incorporated into the survey agenda. Our objective is to obtain a foothold for exploring different kinds of residential value.
2) Online survey of urban residents
After establishing a clear perspective for our study through the above pre-study, we will conduct an online survey to understand the level of awareness regarding urban living. We will collect keywords that the residents associate with their urban life. We will also ask them about their degree of attachment to the city, their intentions of settling down, their degree of interest, and their lifestyles. This survey will be done through a website on the Internet.
In order to examine the regional differences, we will select a total of 2,000 people who reside in 3 different areas in Tokyo ("Downtown", "Uptown", and "Bay area".) The people, whose ages range from the 30s to the 60s, are registered survey participants.
The collected keywords will be examined and analyzed by area and level of resident’s awareness. The purpose of this survey is to identify the relationships between the "city", its "people" and the "value and values associated with residential environments".
2. Study summary
In this chapter, four researchers who participated in the study share their views on the significance of this year's results as well as possible trends for the future.
All of the researchers first pointed out the fact that many people named "parks" as a "good point" of the city or their "favorite place" in the city. We will have to examine this matter closely in the following years. At the present stage, various viewpoints have been presented to determine the course of future research.
From the perspective of evolutionary psychology, Dr. Ohno points out that there is a "craving for greenery", while Ms. Tatsumi notes that Japanese people have a special way of getting in touch with their natural environments. Dr. Wakabayashi recognizes parks as an example of the third place and Dr. Soeda suggests that parks should be seen from the perspective of needs demanded of such locations. That is, the former two researchers interpret parks as fulfilling basic human needs while the latter two focus on the activities that actually take place there. Apparently, many people love parks, and this seems to be simple enough, but considering the various opinions of different researchers, the reasons may be complicated and may involve many factors. In the following year, we will investigate the various meanings of parks though field surveys and interviews.
Another important point that we must investigate is the true value of the city for the residents. Ms. Tatsumi points out that the survey shows that the appreciation index for the city corresponds exactly to the aspects highlighted in real estate advertisements in the area, such as "Station nearby, very convenient", "3-minute walk from the park (river or beach)!" Because the residents can only come up with such superficial reasons, Ms. Tatsumi is concerned about their lack of sense of the "city as a place to live". According to her, it is important to help residents look at the positive aspects of their city with a loving eye so that they can share the overall residential value.
Throughout the research, both Dr. Ohno and Dr. Wakabayashi also emphasized the importance of emotional attachments to the city. Because people with no attachments to the city tend not to care about the activities around them, they do not make efforts to maintain a good environment. This weakens the community and leads to a fragile society with regard to preventing disasters and crimes.
What can we do to help residents find the value of their city and promote emotional attachments to the city? This is the major issue of this research. What we can do first is to investigate and build a systematic residential appreciation model, including levels of attachment to the city, from the perspective of the residents and then present the model to the people. By doing so, we can give them a chance to look into the city, and we hope that this will constitute the first step toward helping them find value in their city in areas other than real estate prices.