A Study of Urban and Rural Landscapes and their Images in Different Population-size City Regions

Research Project

Project/Area Number	60450098
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (B)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Research Field	Human geography
Research Institution	Rissho University
Principal Investigator	MASAI Yasuo Rissho University, 文学部, 教授 (10017113)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	UCHIYAMA Yukihisa Rissho University, 文学部, 助教授 (30036066) OTSUKA Masatoshi Rissho University, 文学部, 教授 (00120890) SAWADA Hiroyuki Rissho University, 文学部, 教授 (00097239) HATTORI Keijiro Rissho University, 文学部, 教授 (50062740) INANAGA Sachio Rissho University, 文学部, 教授 (50062732)
Project Period (FY)	1985 – 1986
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 1986)
Budget Amount *help	¥5,100,000 (Direct Cost: ¥5,100,000) Fiscal Year 1986: ¥1,700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,700,000) Fiscal Year 1985: ¥3,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000)
Keywords	townscape / landscape / city region / image / preference
Research Abstract	The major aim of this comprehensive research is to record and analize various aspects of both urban and rural landscapes of the rapidly changing city regions of Japan. The cultural geographical method is the common practice of this joint study, nevertheless some other methods are also employed where applicable. Greater Tokyo presents a phenomenal example of hierarchically graded shopping centers within its built-up areas, each showing mutually different townscapes. These are arranged spatially in a concentric pattern too. Medium and small city regions tend to reflect present-day tendency of "individualism", and local efforts to make their cities more attractive by conserving traditional townscapes or by remodelling shopping streets anew, or by establishing area-rooted devices, are numerously reported. Techniques ot evaluate landscape or townscape have been investigated too. Inquiries were made to informants by asking preferences, for example. Selected pictures were shown by all investigators of this study group so as to cross-check the degree of differences concerning likes and/or dislikes of the pictures. Naively obtained images were also cross-checked to some extent. Thus, the importance of photographical methods in geographical researches has been theoretically recognized, although it needs much deeper consideration in the future.