A comparison of in situ and GIS landscape metrics for residential satisfaction modeling

Residential satisfaction with landscape has to be modeled in order to include landscape in regional planning decisions. The landscape attributes of a location may be evaluated by means of field audits (in situ approach) or they may be based on variables derived from digital data (GIS approach). In order to compare these two ways of investigating residential satisfaction, a set of in situ metrics and a set of GIS visibility metrics were collated from residential locations in a suburban setting. These metrics were used as explanatory variables in multivariate statistical models designed to account for levels of satisfaction defined from a residential satisfaction survey. The results obtained show that in situ metrics and GIS visibility metrics have the same overall explanatory power. They also emphasize that both sets of metrics are complementary in providing relevant information about the elements that influence residential satisfaction. Ultimately, comparative examination of residuals of the models provides pointers for further improving residential satisfaction modeling.