A Framework for Analyzing Loyalty of Urban Greenway Users Based on Multidimensional Perceptions: Considering the Mediating Effects of Satisfaction and Place Attachment

Abstract

Urban greenways, a form of green infrastructure, offer inhabitants essential areas for recreational activities, effectively promoting public health and enhancing local identity in multiple ways. Clarifying the psychological processes of greenway users and their influencing factors can significantly enhance the formulation of rational greenway construction strategies from a humanistic perspective. However, few studies on urban greenways have focused on the psychological behavior of users, and most of them are limited to the perspective of environmental perception. This study utilizes the research framework of tourist psychological behavior and applies it to urban greenway scenarios to develop a framework for analyzing the factors affecting urban greenway user loyalty, starting from the viewpoint of multidimensional perceived value, with place attachment and satisfaction as mediating variables. We chose the Dasha River greenway in Shenzhen as a representative site for a questionnaire survey and employed structural equation modeling to evaluate the association mechanism between different influencing factors and loyalty. The results show that: (1) This paper's analytical framework, grounded in tourist psychology research, successfully elucidates the psychological formation mechanisms of greenway users. (2) there is a significant direct effect between perceived value and user loyalty; (3) In the impact of perceived value on destination loyalty, there are two effect paths with satisfaction and place attachment as mediating variables, respectively. Satisfaction, as a precursor variable to place attachment, constitutes an additional chain mediation effect pathway. This study can help urban planners and policy makers better understand the public's attitudes and behavioral patterns toward urban greenways and optimize greenway construction and management strategies.

Keywords: greenway, perceived value, satisfaction, place attachment, destination loyalty, Shenzhen City