Landscapes and Natural Environments

Introduction

As commonly used in behavioural research, ‘natural environment’ refers to a large outdoor area with little or no apparent evidence of human presence or intervention (Pitt & Zube, 1987). In contrast, ‘landscape’ refers to a view over or into an area of land, or the area and landforms encompassed by a view (Daniel, 2001). Although research and practical efforts may focus on a landscape as the visual aspect of a natural environment, definitions of landscape often eschew the human exclusion criterion typically used in defining a natural environment. Landscape designations such as ‘cultural’, ‘pastoral’, and ‘natural’ imply varying degrees of human involvement.

In line with these definitions, most landscape assessment work treats the person as a viewer, whereas assessments concerning natural environments commonly treat people as ...