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Arboriculture & Urban Forestry Online
Volume 28, Issue 1 — January 2002
https://www.isa-arbor.com/Publications/Arboriculture-Urban-Forestry

Urban Forests and Parks as Privacy Refuges    (View PDF)

William E. Hammitt

Abstract: Urban forests and parks are forested areas that can serve as refuges for privacy. This article presents a conceptual argument for urban forests and parks as privacy refuges, and data that support the argument. On-site visitors (n = 610) to four Cleveland, Ohio, U.S., Metroparks were surveyed in 1995. Results indicated that considerable amounts of privacy were obtained during visits to the urban forests and parks, that people spent an average of two-plus hours per visit to these privacy refuges, that certain settings (habitats) within the refuges were preferred over others for privacy, and that "reflective thought" was the most important function (benefit) that privacy served within the refuges. The findings have implications for preserving and managing urban forests and parks as nearby refuges where the basic human need for privacy can be found.

Keywords: Benefits; solitude; visitor surveys; urban forestry.

https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.2002.003


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