Consensus in visual preferences: The effects of aesthetic quality and landscape types

- Visual aesthetic quality had a significantly positive linear relationship with the consensus in aesthetic preference judgment.
- Landscape types would have a significant influence on the consensus in aesthetic preference judgment.
- A well-maintained environment with greater coverage of vegetation would benefit to improve the judgment consensus.

Our research used pictures of four different landscapes to study the effects of two possible sources (visual aesthetic quality (VAQ) and landscape types) on the consensus of visual preferences among 156 undergraduate respondents. There were ten pictures each of urban, urban green space, farm, and forest landscapes presented for visual preference assessment. We found that VAQ assessment had a significantly positive linear relationship with judgment consensus when the four landscape types were combined. However, this relationship differed when examining one individual landscape type, it varied depending on the different landscape types. Thus landscape types had a significant influence on the consensus. Additionally, we found that consensus increased when a landscape was well maintained and had greater vegetation coverage.