Measuring place satisfaction by university campus open space attributes

Abstract

Campuses, which are a whole with education, teaching, cultural structures and open spaces, are spatial organizations where students, academicians and staff come together. In this respect, in the design of university campuses, it is necessary to focus not only on physical and aesthetic features, but also on spatial organizations that can create the meaning and social interaction of the place. The purpose of this research is to determine the performance levels of existing campus open spaces and to investigate their effects on place satisfaction. The present study, constructed to determine the impact of functional, social and perceptual attributes of campus open spaces on place satisfaction, was conducted at Karadeniz Technical University- Kanuni Campus. When the campus open spaces were selected in the study, open spaces that allowed socio-cultural activities in the campus were preferred, excluding the educational buildings. Within the scope of the study, in which the analysis of the space as an attitude element constitutes the general framework and originality of the study, a total of 240 people were surveyed in 3 regions selected. In conclusion, the present study discussed the environmental attributes of campus open spaces with a 3-dimensional approach and determined that not only perceptual attributes affected place satisfaction. The study findings suggested that functional and social attributes, occupancy frequency and duration variables had positive effects on place satisfaction. The study findings are considered important for both urban planners and administrators, who are responsible for protection and development of campus open spaces, and the users.