1. Introduction
Public open spaces (POS) are public or privately owned open spaces, particularly green parks, playgrounds, and green parks [
1,
2,
3,
4]. Non-parkland areas are also regarded as POS and include squares, cycle paths, and green corridors that are important to people for their recreational and physical activities [
5,
6]. POS are mainly located in urban landscapes and are freely accessible to the general public [
7]. These POS provide mental refreshment as well as opportunities for physical activities, such as walking, physical exercise, and leisure. They also enhance social cohesion [
3,
5,
8,
9,
10,
11,
12,
13,
14,
15,
16,
17,
18,
19]. Recognizing the potential impact of POS on mental and physical health and well-being, POS have recently been prioritized in urban planning as well as in public health research [
5,
8,
20,
21].
The services provided by POS are central to the well-being of the user population, providing tangible and intangible benefits [
22]. Researchers have examined the contribution of POS to quality of life, and the findings have been integrated into policy frameworks to achieve sustainable urban planning [
1,
23]. Most studies of the relationship between POS and well-being have been conducted in developed nations, particularly in Australia, the USA, and Europe [
3,
12,
20,
24,
25,
26]. However, the assessment of public open space services (POSS) from a socio-cultural perspective remains unexplored, particularly in developing countries, including Saudi Arabia. The assessment of preferences and perceptions regarding public open space services (POSS) has emerged as a significant tool in addressing complex challenges related to global environmental change and systematic urban planning and associated policies [
27,
28]. In Saudi Arabia, a desert country with a population of 34 million, there have been very few studies on the identification and assessment of POS [
29,
30,
31,
32,
33,
34]. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, few studies of POS have examined socio-cultural perspectives in detail or the contribution of POS to well-being.
Rapid urban expansion and a lack of awareness and appropriate management strategies have emerged as great challenges to the sustainable restoration of POS [
27,
35]. Particularly in the Saudi Arabian context, most studies have been performed on the type, quality, and design of POS in cities [
28,
32,
34,
36]. Thus, after a comprehensive review of the previous research, notable research gaps were found. First, most of the studies related to POS have been performed in Europe, Australia, and the USA [
13,
20,
26]; very few studies have been conducted in the Saudi context. Second, in Saudi Arabia, most previous studies have been carried out on proposed planning related to POS and the role of government in enhancing the quality of POS [
29,
31,
32]; these studies do not capture the importance of POSS as perceived by stakeholders. Third, the socio-demographic attributes (age, gender, educational level, social groups) of stakeholders largely determine the perceived importance of POSS, but no studies have carried out a socio-cultural evaluation of POSS in the Saudi context. Fourth, most of the studies in Saudi Arabia have been performed at a city scale [
29,
31,
32,
34,
36], and very few have been carried out from a social perspective. Finally, previous research has shown that there is a strong nexus between POS and well-being but, in the Saudi context, no studies have been conducted to assess the impact of POSS on the well-being of stakeholders. Given these research gaps, this study set out to conduct out a socio evaluation of POSS on the KAU campus, Jeddah city in Saudi Arabia and the impact of POSS on well-being.
King Abdulaziz University (KAU) is a public university located in Jeddah city, Saudi Arabia. Jeddah is situated on the western coast of the RedSsea with an arid climate as per Koppen’s climatic classification (BWh). During winter, the temperature ranges from 15 to 28 °C, and in summer, the temperature reaches 48 °C in the afternoon and 27 °C in the evening. A very small amount of rainfall occurs, usually during November and December. Thus, the climate is relatively uncomfortable due to very high temperatures and little rainfall, and it is necessary to focus on the effective restoration and management of POS, particularly green and blue POS, for the well-being of urban dwellers. In particular, in an educational institution, evaluation of the services provided by POS is crucial not only to enhance the educational value of the institution but also to improve the well-being of students, faculty members, academic staff, and visitors. POS (such as gardens, parks, corridors, plazas) not only enhance the beauty of the educational institution but also improve mental (through mental refreshment, leisure, and good social relation) and physical health (through walking and other physical activities). This study mainly deals with (i) the social evaluation of POSS as perceived by the stakeholders of the university and (ii) the impact of POSS on the well-being of the stakeholders in a coastal university i.e., KAU in Jeddah city. This study is a unique example from a micro-scale in the Saudi context. Thus, this study has immense potential to aid understanding of the contribution of POS provided by an educational institution and the impact of POS on the well-being of teaching and non-teaching stakeholders. To fulfill the objectives of the study, research questions have been addressed: (i) is there any impact of socio-demographic attributes on the perceived importance of POSS, (ii) is there any impact of POSS on the well-being of the stakeholders of the university; and (iii) are the stakeholders satisfied with the management of POSS?
4. Discussion
From the result of the study, it can be seen that the perceived importance of POSS is largely determined by the socio-demographic attributes of the stakeholders. Previous studies have shown that evaluation of POS (and urban green spaces) is influenced by socio-demographic factors such as age, gender, and educational level [
49,
50,
51]. In the case of gender, males are highly dependent on POSS compared to females, as males spend more time in various POS.
Almost 90% of stakeholders were surveyed within the university campus, and nearly 80% of the stakeholders visit POS four to six times per week. People living near POS are more likely to use them. Physical activities and well-being were positively associated with living near POS. Most of the residents reported that POS were visited for light physical activities (such as walking or jogging). In many previous research studies, it was found that POSS play crucial roles in providing different physical activities [
16,
52,
53]. About 90% of respondents reported that physical exercise helps to maintain body weight (ranging from little to extremely). Similar results have been recorded for hypertension, enhancement of activeness, and reduction of liver fat. More than 80% of respondents reported that POSS help maintain hypertension, reduce mental stress, and enhance energy levels. Around, 70% of stakeholders reported that POSS are crucial to maintaining cholesterol and reducing blood sugar. Recent studies report that POSS are very closely related to physical and mental health through restorative effects and to social cohesion [
25,
54,
55,
56,
57]. Different services provided by POS not only encourage stakeholders’ informal association but also create awareness about the services provided POS among the public. POSS make an immensely positive impact in terms of strong social cohesion, health benefits, and well-being [
17,
58]. The findings of this study are similar to previous research studies.
From the result of the study, it can be seen that more than 80% of stakeholders are satisfied (ranging from agree to strongly agree) with the management of POS attributes. However, many stakeholders reported that a more effective focuses needs to be given to the maintenance of gardens, green spaces, and exercise equipment, as well as accessibility to enhance the quality of POS. Maintenance and accessibility are crucial to enhancing the quality of POSS [
59,
60,
61].
Previous studies have shown that restoration and management of POS in developing countries have generated a trade-off between the importance and performance of POSS (
Table 6). For example, increases in the population have created threats to POSS due to high demand. In this study, it was observed that there were discrepancies between the performance and importance of POSS on the university campus. There was a lack of understanding of the importance of POSS and the well-being value of POSS. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study dealing with the socio-cultural evaluation of POSS at a micro-scale.
Figure 9 represents management strategies for POS, which can be managed from four perspectives, namely landscape development, open space provision, landscape maintenance, and quadruple bottom lines. For each perspective, there are many attributes through which POS can be managed. These broad perspectives can be implemented at a local scale for better restoration and management of POS. Therefore, planners and policymakers must focus on these perspectives to improve the functional value of POS within the university campus.
Climate change has emerged as one of the most significant challenges to cities due to the deterioration as well as degradation of green and blue spaces. In this context, cities must have significant and effective strategies and laws to cope with climate change to enhance the quality of life of the city dwellers. Thus, urgent action is needed to restore and manage POS. In Saudi Arabia, effective guidelines and regulations related to green spaces and provision of POS have been implemented by the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs (MoMRA). As per these guidelines, the integration of green spaces has been significantly prioritized in the decision-making framework. Apart from this, special focus has been given on the availability as well as the accessibility of POS in Saudi cities by the National Transformation Programme (NTP) in Vision 2030 [
29,
30]. The Saudi government is concerned with the provision of POS to make cities more livable and has invested huge sums to enhance the accessibility of POS [
29,
30,
63]. At a local scale, municipalities must focus on the restoration and management of POS for urban environmental sustainability and improve the quality of life of city dwellers.
Limitations and Future Directions of the Research
This is the first study dealing with the assessment of the social valuation of POSS and their impact on the well-being of the university stakeholders. Thus, this study has immense scope to help understanding of the importance of POSS as perceived by university stakeholders and their impact on well-being at a micro level i.e., a university level. Despite this, the study has some limitations. First, the survey was performed when the entire world was passing through serious public health threat, i.e., COVID-19, and lockdown. Thus, limited samples were collected for the survey. Second, in Saudi Arabia, there is insufficient understanding of the impact of POSS on well-being. Thus, it may be difficult to delineate the impact of POSS on well-being. Third, few studies are available to support the findings of this study, as few have been performed on the social valuation of POS. Nonetheless, this study has a crucial role in highlighting the social value of POS as perceived by the stakeholders and the impact on well-being from at a micro-scale. Thus, there is scope to implement such studies at a large-scale i.e., a city-scale to improve understanding of the dependency of urban dwellers on POS and the well-being of the urban dwellers. Apart from this, future research must focus on the spatial distribution of POSS for a better understanding of the pattern of POSS at a city scale. In particular, future mapping of green and blue POS is crucial for enhancing the well-being of the urban dwellers and urban environmental sustainability.
5. Conclusions
This study mainly focuses on a socio-cultural evaluation of POSS at a micro-scale i.e., the campus of KAU. This study used a questionnaire survey and various statistical analyses for a socio-cultural evaluation of services provided by POS. From the result of the study, some notable findings emerge:
More than 70% of stakeholders were aware of the services provided by POS within the university campus.
Among the services provided by POS, the highest preference was given to educational value (4.71) followed by sense of place (4.70), spiritual value (4.69), inspiration (4.65), social cohesion (4.61), leisure (4.52), and living area (4.50).
The importance of POSS is largely determined by the socio-demographic attributes of the stakeholders (gender, age, educational level). It was found that males give more importance to POSS than females. Bachelor’s students gave a relatively high value to POSS in comparison to Ph.D. students, diploma students, high school students, and master’s students.
There were significant differences in the perceived importance of POSS by gender, age, and social group, showing the significant impact of socio-demographic attributes on the perceived importance of POSS.
About 70 to 90% of the total stakeholders reported that POSS have a positive impact on well-being (ranging from little to extremely) such as maintenance of body weight, enhancement of activeness, maintenance of hypertension, reduction of mental stress, and enhancement of energy levels.
It was observed that about 80 to 90% of stakeholders are satisfied (ranging from agree to strongly agree) with the management of POS within the university campus.
The factor analysis showed that there were seven POSS (walking, recreational, physical fitness, public participation, living area) falling under principal component 1 (46% of the total POSS).
Thus, it was found that KAU campus stakeholders see POSS as being important to them, and their well-being is also closely linked with the services provided by POS. Although most of the stakeholders are satisfied with the management strategies, planners and policymakers must focus on further improving the management and restoration of POS. Previous studies have reported that people are not aware of the importance and contribution of POSS to their daily life or well-being. Thus, governments and local authorities must pay attention to POSS in decision-making.
This study was on a micro-scale, and the stakeholders are satisfied with the services provided by the KAU campus. However, moving to a large-scale study, such as city level, there are significant discrepancies in POSS provided and the desired level in the Saudi context. Thus, evaluation of the availability of POSS is not enough on its own, and an assessment of the importance of POSS from a socio-cultural perspective plays a significant role in understanding the importance of POSS from social perspectives. In fact, the ultimate goal of POSS is to satisfy the people’s needs and adopt strategies on the basis of the expectation level of society.