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Exploring the Patterns of Recreational Activity among Urban Green Spaces in Poland
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the socio-demographic background, patterns of recreational activity, and their impact on mood regulation strategies used by urban green spaces (UGS) visitors in Poland. In our research approach, we collected data from 376 participants through an online survey. In the next step, we developed structural equation models: one general model and two additional models for men and women. We discovered that both socio-demographic characteristics, as well as the variety of visited green spaces impact people’s mood regulation strategies. In our research approach, latent variable places that consists of different types of green spaces is the key concept that positively affect mood regulation strategies; visiting more places reduces the tendency to decrease mood and increases the tendency to increase mood. Moreover, we identified some important gender similarities and differences. There is causation between the types of leisure activity and the frequency of a leisure activity among men and women. However, in the case of women, the frequency of a leisure activity is positively associated with the tendency to increase mood; in the case of men, the association is negative. The research results provide a deeper insight into of the patterns of green leisure that shape the subjective well-being of urban green space visitors in Poland.
Recreational Evaluation of Forests in Urban Environments: Methodological and Practical Aspects
This literature review shows that there is no up-to-date common approach to assess the recreational potential of forests. The aim of the study is to present methodological and practical aspects of the evaluation of forests in urban environments for recreational purposes based on the example of urban forests in Poznań (Poland). In this research, the following evaluation criteria were selected: types of forest habitats, ages of dominant species, stand composition, stocking index, the share of undergrowth, soil cover, canopy closure, and surface water. All these criteria are presented in the forest management plan (FMP). We prove that the majority of stands within the study area (81.86%) have medium potential for recreational purposes. Moreover, regarding recreation services, documents existing within the study area are not specified enough. The undoubted advantages of the proposed method are a forestry perspective on the problem, a uniform dataset included in FMPs, data availability, and the possibility of comparing data from different areas.