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The Role of Historical Persian Gardens on the Health Status of Contemporary Urban Residents

Gardens and Health Status of Contemporary Urban Residents

EcoHealth volume 11, pages 308–321 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

The inherent economic and social challenges in major cities have been known to foster stress among the urban population. Frequent stress over long periods may well have serious damaging outcomes, resulting in ailments such as burnout syndrome, sleeplessness and exhaustion, depression, feelings of panic, among others. Therefore, providing access to resources that may enable people to cope with the stress of urban life has become a crucial phenomenon in the twentieth century. Increasing empirical evidence indicates that the presence of natural areas can contribute to enhancing the quality of life in many ways. This study examines two historical Persian gardens from the residents’ perspective in well-known, historic cities of Iran: Isfahan and Kerman. The data were collected through questionnaires (n = 252), semi-structured interviews (n = 20), and visual observation techniques. The findings demonstrate that nature, diversity and the gardens’ historical background, and coherence motivate the residents’ frequent visits to the gardens, which help to address their social, psychological, and physical needs. In addition, the residents’ involvements and the variety of experiences that occur in the gardens lead to the creation of deeper meanings and values associated with the gardens. Subsequently, these construct functional and emotional attachment that evokes a sense of place and identity and may contribute to society’s health and well-being.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to appreciate UTM and Research Management Research (RMC) for providing the opportunity of this research and thank “Centre for The Study of Built Environment in the Malay World (KALAM)” for funding.

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Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Built Environment (FAB), Universiti Teknologi of Malaysia (UTM), 81310, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

    Raheleh Rostami & Hasanuddin Lamit

  2. Faculty of Civil Engineering (FKA), Universiti Teknologi of Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

    Seyed Meysam Khoshnava

  3. Islamic Azad University of Noor, Mazandaran, Iran

    Rasoul Rostami

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  1. Raheleh Rostami
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  2. Hasanuddin Lamit
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  3. Seyed Meysam Khoshnava
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  4. Rasoul Rostami
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Correspondence to Raheleh Rostami.

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Rostami, R., Lamit, H., Khoshnava, S.M. et al. The Role of Historical Persian Gardens on the Health Status of Contemporary Urban Residents. EcoHealth 11, 308–321 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-014-0939-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-014-0939-6

Keywords

  • nature
  • urban green spaces
  • stress
  • mood change
  • well-being