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Forests
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Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society
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Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Economics, Policy, and Social Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (29 February 2024) | Viewed by 4774

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Bixia Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Agriculture, University of the Ryukyus, 1 Senbaru, Nishihara Town, Okinawa 903-0213, Japan
Interests: fengshui; village landscape; landscape ecology; forest tourism; forest recreation; rural tourism; rural development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Throughout history, humans have relied on extracting resources from forests to satisfy the diverse needs for food, shelter, and even spiritual well-being. Today, the cultural value of trees, forests, and wood is extensively studied from the perspective of sustainable forest management. However, cultures relevant to trees are geographically specific, due to all the different types of forests and indigenous cultures in the world.

This Special Issue plans to provide a comprehensive perspective of the diverse cultural values relevant to forests, trees, and wood that exist in the world, and also the transformation of tree/forest cultural values under social economic situations, e.g., globalization and urbanization. Research related to how people’s attitudes and perceptions influence forest management and utilization are also welcomed.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Forests in sacred sites;
  • Trees for ceremonies, rituals, or religions;
  • Gender and trees;
  • Forest tourism;
  • Forest recreation;
  • Forest bathing.

Dr. Bixia Chen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fengshui forest
  • village fengshui
  • forest tourism
  • rural tourism

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 1729 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Aesthetic Expectations and Aesthetic Experiential Qualities on Tourist Satisfaction: A Case Study of the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
by Ying Wen, Fen Luo and Hao Li
Forests 2024, 15(2), 378; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15020378 - 18 Feb 2024
Viewed by 721
Abstract
Aesthetic expectations often constitute the primary focus in marketing nature-based tourist destinations. However, academic research has insufficiently explored the disparity between tourists’ aesthetic expectations and the actual aesthetic quality maintenance in shaping satisfaction. Employing the Expectation Confirmation Theory, this study utilized structural equation [...] Read more.
Aesthetic expectations often constitute the primary focus in marketing nature-based tourist destinations. However, academic research has insufficiently explored the disparity between tourists’ aesthetic expectations and the actual aesthetic quality maintenance in shaping satisfaction. Employing the Expectation Confirmation Theory, this study utilized structural equation modeling techniques to analyze survey data (n = 446). It proposed and tested an Aesthetic Expectation Confirmation Model to examine the relationship between aesthetic expectations, experiential qualities, and tourist satisfaction in the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. The empirical findings show that aesthetic expectations have a direct, negative impact on satisfaction, while aesthetic expectation confirmation has a positive direct impact on satisfaction. Moreover, aesthetic expectation confirmation also plays a mediating role in the influence of aesthetic expectations and experiential quality on satisfaction. Specifically, aesthetic expectations indirectly impact satisfaction negatively through aesthetic expectation confirmation, whereas aesthetic experiential qualities have a positive, indirect impact on satisfaction through the same process. These findings offer theoretical contributions to the literature on forest recreation aesthetics and hold practical significance for the planning and management of destination aesthetics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society)
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23 pages, 5058 KiB  
Article
The Influence of Traditional Ethnic Villages on Forest Structure Based on PLS-SEM: A Case Study of Miao Inhabited Area
by Xinying Ma, Shidong Zhang, Luo Guo and Jingbiao Yang
Forests 2023, 14(10), 2011; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14102011 - 07 Oct 2023
Viewed by 968
Abstract
The activity characteristics of the village and its symbiotic relationship with the environment play an important role in the sustainable development of the surrounding environment. Miao villages have a long history. In the process of long-term interaction with the surrounding natural environment, Miao [...] Read more.
The activity characteristics of the village and its symbiotic relationship with the environment play an important role in the sustainable development of the surrounding environment. Miao villages have a long history. In the process of long-term interaction with the surrounding natural environment, Miao villages have formed a unique forest culture, which has an important impact on the distribution of the surrounding forests and plays a crucial role in local forest management. In this study, we took the Miao villages of China that are distributed in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture of China as an example and constructed a research framework to study the interaction between the natural environment and human activities around the Miao villages and its impact on forest change based on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and geographically weighted regression modeling (GWR) methods. The validity and reliability evaluations showed that the PLS-SEM model was reasonable. The results showed that the Miao villages were randomly distributed within 0–2 km and clustered in the 8–10 km buffer zone. The temporal variation of the forest landscape around the Miao villages was small, and the spatial heterogeneity was obvious. Within the 0~2 km buffer zone, the proportion of closed-canopy forest was the largest, and with the increase in the buffer zone radius, the proportion of closed-canopy forest gradually decreased, the open-canopy forest gradually grew, and the proportion of shrubbery and other forests showed an upward trend first and then a downward trend. Temporally, the four forest landscapes did not change much, with closed and open forests sliding, and shrubbery and other forests increasing. Regarding the drivers of forest structure change, topographic factors and landscape patterns had a positive effect on forest structure, while human activities had a negative effect. The influence of topography on human activities in the Miao villages weakened the direct positive effect of topography on forests and promoted the positive effect of the landscape pattern on forests. There were significant spatial differences in the GWR regression coefficients of the effects of different factors on forest structure in 2020, with a pivotal negative correlation between NDVI and night-time light data. In addition, the higher the elevation, the more unfavorable the distribution of open-canopy forests and the better the distribution of closed-canopy forests. The higher the slope, the higher the NDVI but the more unfavorable the distribution of closed-canopy forests. In general, the impacts of Miao villages on forest structure are highly complex and interactive, with both direct and indirect effects. Different factors interact to affect the structure of the forest. The study on the effect of Miao villages on forests is helpful for more targeted forest protection and the formulation of laws and regulations, so as to find a balance between human activities and forest management, in order to maintain the ecological balance of local areas. This study introduced the PLS-SEM model to investigate the impacts of Miao villages on forest structure, which effectively enhanced our understanding of the drivers and impacts of forest change and provides theoretical support and a basis for forest protection and management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society)
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16 pages, 3808 KiB  
Article
Decline in Semi-Natural Grasslands and Changes in Value Perceptions in Japan’s Natural Parks
by Kazushige Yamaki and Shigemitsu Shibasaki
Forests 2023, 14(8), 1564; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14081564 - 31 Jul 2023
Viewed by 904
Abstract
The decline in semi-natural grasslands has resulted from reduced traditional use, leading to a marked decrease in their overall area. Despite being located within Japan’s core protected area system, the effectiveness of natural parks in conserving grasslands remains unclear. This study aimed to [...] Read more.
The decline in semi-natural grasslands has resulted from reduced traditional use, leading to a marked decrease in their overall area. Despite being located within Japan’s core protected area system, the effectiveness of natural parks in conserving grasslands remains unclear. This study aimed to determine whether natural parks successfully prevent the decline in grasslands. By analyzing historical changes in value perceptions toward grasslands in natural parks, natural parks’ contribution to grassland conservation and the associated challenges were explored. The study focused on the Sengokuhara grassland in Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and incorporated previous studies on other grasslands. It revealed that grasslands have been valued for their scenic views and recreational potential since the establishment of the national park. As grassland scarcity increased nationwide, attention shifted toward rare plants found exclusively on grasslands, along with grasslands’ value as semi-natural landscapes. Consequently, natural-park-based grasslands have primarily been conserved based on these two values. However, conservation efforts within natural parks have mainly focused on regulating human activities, with limited measures to sustain nature, such as grasslands, through livelihoods. To enhance grassland conservation, it is essential to recognize their cultural value and develop mechanisms that ensure economic benefits are reinvested in conservation efforts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society)
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15 pages, 5519 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Behaviors Conceptualization for Forest Adventures Tours: The Case of Cloud Ocean Sites in Hyrcanian Forests Listed as UNESCO’s World Heritage Property
by Amir Ghorbani, Kai Zhu, Hossein Mousazadeh, Farahnaz Akbarzadeh Almani, Ali Zangiabadi, Mahin Pireh and Lóránt Dénes Dávid
Forests 2023, 14(5), 1034; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14051034 - 17 May 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1499
Abstract
The Cloud Ocean phenomenon in the Hyrcanian Forests, listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List, is one of the most stunning yet lesser-known ecotourism destinations that has recently attracted the attention of adventure tours. However, the increasing number of ecotourists visiting these sites [...] Read more.
The Cloud Ocean phenomenon in the Hyrcanian Forests, listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List, is one of the most stunning yet lesser-known ecotourism destinations that has recently attracted the attention of adventure tours. However, the increasing number of ecotourists visiting these sites is expected to threaten the sensitive ecosystem of the Cloud Ocean sites. Therefore, this study aims to conceptualize sustainable behaviors for off-road forest tours in the Cloud Ocean sites of the Hyrcanian Forests. A combined qualitative-quantitative approach was adopted to achieve this aim, using the meta-synthesis method to cover the qualitative part and Smart PLS software for the quantitative data analysis. The qualitative assessment involved 19 participants, while the quantitative study included 240 experts who helped monitor and evaluate the indicators as components of the model. Previous literature has given little attention to the Cloud Ocean sites. Therefore, the conceptualization of sustainable behavior for forest adventure tours in these sites is considered the most significant contribution of this study. Paying attention to the dimensions of the proposed model can significantly reduce damage to these sites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Talking about Forest Culture Research from the Environment to Society)
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