• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.64-75
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of satisfaction in neighborhood park environments located in the Changwon-si of Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea, on physical activity, the number of parks used for health improvement, and health levels based on Body Mass Index(BMI). Accordingly, a survey was conducted of 429 nearby residents and users of eight neighborhood parks located in urban areas of Seongsan-gu and Uichang-gu in the Changwon-si. The correlation between the environmental perception of neighborhood parks and physical activity and health, which was observed in the survey results, was analyzed using one-by-one linear regression analysis. By summarizing the study results, it was found that the primary reasons for avoiding park use were lack of time, time and effort required to reach the park(i.e., distance from the park), and lack of facilities within the park. Conversely, the primary reasons for using the park included accessibility, walking or strolling, leisure facilities, trees or shade, and diversity in exercise areas. In the case of park users, walking or strolling was the most common activity in the park. On average, park users walked to the parks for 10 minutes and exercised for an hour at least twice per week. With respect to the physical environment of the parks and surrounding areas, park users showed a high level of satisfaction with the distance between their houses and parks and the street environment. On the contrary, they exhibited low levels of satisfaction with water spaces and sightseeing within the parks. Subsequently, it was shown that the number of people using the parks for physical activities and health improvement was positively influenced(within a 5% significance level) by the intent to use the park for exercise, time spent in the park, satisfaction with park use and health improvement, distance to the park, and the convenience of using the park for the elderly. However, only the health improvement gained from park use was found to exhibit a correlation with BMI at the 10% significance level. Continuous accumulation of practical case studies on physical activities in parks and their health improvement effects is required. Through this, park spaces that are under the threat of reduction or elimination owing to various development plans can be conserved and expanded. Furthermore, such case studies can be used to provide data as the basis for deriving park plans and designs that improve parks' functions as sites of physical activity and health improvement.