Physical and social attributes in the urban identity. Analysis of the residents’ perception of València (Spain)
Viñals, María Joséa and Alonso-Monasterio, Paua
aInstitute for Heritage Restoration, Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain.
bDepartment of Economics and Social Sciences, Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain.
Abstract:
Urban identity is a recurring issue in the field of architecture, urbanism, landscaping, heritage, geography, sociology as well as in tourism. The approaches logically focus on one or another aspect according to the discipline that addresses it. Moreover, it is clear that a comprehensive vision of urban identity includes the analysis of the image of the city, based on its: physical attributes, both natural and artificial ones. This vision also includes the social attributes, derived from historic, economic and cultural components.
This work addresses the analysis of those attributes that define the identity of the city, focusing on València (Spain) study case, in order to address the enhancement of the urban cultural tourism. To achieve this goal, beyond an expert analysis, residents’ self-percetion survey about urban imagery (urban perceived image) is done.
The preliminary survey data results show that the residents’ perception on urban identity is drawn from a combination of the environmental, heritage and social attributes of the city. The general findings of the study are then situated within the conceptual framework of the residents’ sense of place assessment, and the residents’ attitudes towards future urban tourism planning actions (appraisal of acceptance of the host population).
Keywords: Urban Identity; City Image; Residents’s Self-perception; València.