mojtaba sharifnejad

As one of the pivotal qualitative attributes inherent in urban neighborhoods, the sense of place functions as a crucial link between individuals and spatial settings, endowing locales with distinctive personality and identity. The incorporation of this concept into the framework of new urban developments, devoid of historical precedents, necessitates careful consideration of multifaceted factors, including but not limited to identity, vitality, memorability, sense of belonging, and place attachment. Regrettably, contemporary oversight in the conscientious establishment and cultivation of urban spaces, founded upon the principles of "sense of place" and "place attachment," coupled with a disregard for historical continuities, has given rise to adverse consequences. These consequences encompass the erosion of identity, diminishing residents' sense of connection to their surroundings, diminished social interactions, and a proliferation of various social detriments. This present study endeavors to delve into the nuanced concept of the sense of place within newly developed urban environments. Specifically, it seeks to discern the factors influencing the genesis and enhancement of this phenomenon within such contexts through an exhaustive examination of three site and services areas situated in the city of Yazd, Iran. Employing a correlational research design, the study leverages statistical tools such as the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, Pearson Correlation tests, and stepwise regression analyses to elucidate the intensity and directionality of relationships between dependent and independent variables. The findings of this investigation reveal that temporal considerations, the sense of belonging, the personal dependence of residents, and identity emerge as paramount variables exhibiting the highest correlation with the advancement of the sense of place in novel urban developments.

The present study was conducted with the aim of explaining the relationship between the quantitative factors of degree of enclosure and the temperature difference (the difference between the average temperature of the passages and the average temperature of the city at the same time) in the historical passages of the city of Meybod. This research is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of method. The dependent variable was the temperature difference of historical passages with the average temperature of the city and the four variables of length, width, height of the body and the degree of enclosure of the passage were considered as independent variables. The statistical population is 90 passages in the historical context of Meibod city. The way of choosing the passages was random and based on their share from each neighborhood of the entire network of passages in the historical context of the city. Correlation tests, linear regression and Pearson's correlation test were used to measure the relationship between the quantitative factors of degree of enclosure and temperature changes. The results indicate that the two components of enclosure degree and wall height with beta of 0.634 and 0.623 at a significance level above %95 have a signinificant and direct relationship with the temperature difference of historical passages and city temperature. According to the findings it can be concluded that there is no signinificant relationship between the length and width of the passages and temperature changes in the city, while there is a significant relationship between the height of the wall and the degree of enclosure of the passages and temperature changes.

Place attachment is one of the topics in the field of urban design. This concept is a result of linking people with their environment in order to improve environmental quality. The concept of place attachment includes different scales, including city, house, and neighborhood attachment; however, peoples' attachment to their residential environments is the most important. Place attachment is manifested in neighborhood attachment formation by staying and living in the residential environments and eventually developing strong interest. Neighborhood centers are considered the most prominent component of neighborhoods and play an important role in keeping the neighborhood alive to shape neighborhood attachment for residents. Kooy-e-Asatid neighborhood center located in district three of Yazd is the main part of the neighborhood; however, it is faced with many environmental issues such as deteriorated social relationships and declined security due to the reduced presence of people. There are other destructive problems in this neighborhood center, such as the loss of cohesion and spatial integrity due to unbuilt spaces and consequently reduced place attachment and bad quality of life. However, there are some considerations that place attachment can increase people's presence and make sense of attachment in their neighborhood center and functionally save it from isolation. Therefore, the main purpose of this quantitative study is to determine the affecting factors and their impacts on promoting place attachment.

In this regard, in order to collect information, library documents and resources, interviews, field observations, and questionnaires have been used. Eventually, in order to analyze the obtained data SPSS software has been used. The questionnaire designed to be distributed among the residents of the Kooy-e- Asatid neighborhood consisted of 44 questions of variables, and in order to measure the results, a 5-point Likert scale was used. The statistical population included all 1182 people (342 households), and the sample size was 181 questionnaires, calculated by Cochran's formula at 95% confidence level with p = q = 0.5 and with error d = 0.1. Then, they were distributed among the respondents by using the available sampling method. In order to assess the reliability of the questionnaire, the "Cronbach's alpha" test was used, and to evaluate the normality of data distribution, the "Kolmograph-Smirnov" test was utilized. The Bartlett test was applied to determine the correlation between the research data. Finally, the exploratory factor analysis test was used to analyze the affecting factors on the promotion of residents' place attachment.

Findings indicate that among the factors extracted from the questionnaires, physical-visual factors (cumulative factor load of 20.769), individual characteristics (cumulative factor load of 36.645), personal and collective memories and values ​​( Cumulative factor load 45.760), spatial facilities (cumulative factor load 544.184) and distance from neighborhood center (cumulative factor load 58.900) have the most impacts on Kooy-e- Asatid neighborhood residents' place attachment, respectively. Furthermore, among the obtained factors, the physical-visual factor with indicators such as architectural features, visual signs, type of materials, etc., had the most impact on Kooy-e- Asatid neighborhood residents' place attachment. Apart from the similarities in physical-visual contributors in Kooy-e Asatid and other studied urban areas, architectural features such as designing living spaces by considering proportions and their differences from other contemporary neighborhood centers are very important features in Kooy-e-Asatid neighborhood.

After examining the findings, it can be stated that according to physical-visual factors, some features such as individual characteristics, personal and collective memories and values, spatial facilities, and distance from neighborhood center can help the creation of place attachment in contemporary urban centers. Some different suggestions can also be made to promote place attachment in contemporary urban neighborhoods centers: 1. Accurate and calculated design of space in  neighborhood centers and paying attention to design features such as the proportions, balance and harmony of space with the existing texture in order to differentiate it from other neighborhood centers; 2. Designing contemporary urban context based on historical context to shape the identity of new urban neighborhoods; 3. Consideration of neighborhood values ​​ in designing the neighborhood centers in order to engage people with the place and encourage them to have a greater presence. 4. Creating a connection between different spaces and providing an atmosphere of a collective space into the neighborhood centers in order to create continuity and integrity of spaces.

Extended Abstract
In recent decades, the level of neighborhood attachment to residential areas in urban contemporary neighborhoods has been debilitated through the use of patterns and styles of urban planning and non-indigenous architecture in a way that focuses on purely physical components leading to settlements with the least social interactions and not attendance in collective spaces. However, in the past, it seems that one of the main features of any neighborhood has been the close connection between the environment components and the sense of place attachment and traditional neighborhoods have always had the highest level of residents' attachment to themselves. Shahrak-e- Daneshgah of Yazd is one of the new neighborhoods in the contemporary context of the city that seems to have not been successful in shaping the relationship between residents and the residential environment, also it is involved with some problems such as reduction of residents' communication, lack of formation of collective memories and events, diminishment of sense of belonging and dependence as well as the decline of residents' attachment to their living environment. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to identify and evaluation the effective indicators on attachment to residential neighborhoods in the Shahrak-e- Daneshgah of Yazd. Also it seeks to answer two questions:1) What are the effective indicators on residents' attachment to contemporary residential areas?
 2) How much is the extent and intensity of the impact of each of indicators on the residents' attachment to the Shahrak-e- Daneshgah of Yazd?
 
This article has used three research methods including survey, descriptive and correlation. In addition, a questionnaire that according to the theoretical model of research was used to collect information from residents to assess their sense of neighborhood attachment, as well as library resources and field studies to complete the required data to conduct research. The apparent validity of the research instrument (questionnaire) was confirmed by Yazd university professors and its reliability was confirmed by using of Cronbach's alpha test. In order to measure the variables in the questionnaire, the five-point Likert scale and systematic sampling method were used. The volume of the statistical population includes all residents of the area (7581 people) and the sample size has been calculated using Cochran's formula at 95% confidence level with q = p = 0.5 and d = 0.05 with error. Finally, likely to distortion of some questionnaires, the sample size of 320 was considered. To test the obtained data through a questionnaire, SPSS software was used. Also, multivariate regression was used to excavate the data and explain the effect of indicators on neighborhood attachment among the available analysis tests.
 
According to the theoretical model of the research, the variable of neighborhood attachment was considered as a dependent one and the variables of residential characteristics, social interactions, presence, individual feeling, collective feeling, physical, semantic and functional were considered as independent ones of this research. Due to the qualitatively variables, measurable indicators for each of the variables are included in the theoretical model of the research. Independent variables explain totally 70.9% of the variance of the dependent variable in the Shahrak-e- Daneshgah of Yazd. Based on the calculated regression coefficients, eight research variables have a direct and significant connection with the dependent variable and only the variable of personal characteristics with beta of )0.031(and a significance level of )0.271(has no significant connection with the dependent variable of the research. This means that indicators such as age, occupation, marital status, education, etc. do not have a significant connection with place attachment, and in other words, decreasing or increasing age and education or job changes do not have a considerable effect on people's attachment to their neighborhood. The results indicate that the residential characteristics variable with a beta of )0.463(has the highest significant relationship with the dependent variable and the semantic variable has the least significant relationship with the dependent variable by two items (index) called historical background and the existence of brilliant elements with a beta coefficient of (0.305).
 
As mentioned formerly, neighborhoods are considered as one of the main habitats in cities and play an important role in the physical and functional structure of each city. Conforming the importance of this role, attention to spatial qualities is vital to maintain the dynamism and continuity of flow and residence. With these explanations, finally, the results of this study express that the duration of living in neighborhoods are effective on shaping the sense of attachment to the residential environment, so that the more presence precedent in the neighborhood and personal ownership of housing, the less movement happen and the sense of responsibility of people toward environment will crystallize and as a result, their sense of attachment to the neighborhood will increase. Collective factors such as collective feeling, social interactions and presence are the next steps that confirm the collective nature of events at the neighborhood level and as this study showed, in urban contemporary contexts, there is a significant reduction in the incidence of group events. On the other hand, in the Shahrak-e- Daneshgah neighborhood, we see the low impact of individual variables such as personal feelings and characteristics on creating and promoting attachment to the neighborhood, to the extent that unlike many previous studies on residential scale, in this research personal characteristics are ineffective on shaping residents' attachment to their neighborhood. This indicates that the Shahrak-e-Daneshgah neighborhood, as a new residential neighborhood without antiquity and historical roots, lacks a collective spirit and suffers from the lack of social interactions and the presence of people in the neighborhood and needs to pay attention to factors that they lead to a collective spirit in the neighborhood.

Hafez Street in Shiraz, as the axis connecting the Quran Gate to the Isfahan Gate, has lost its visual coherence due to the interventions of recent decades. Therefore, its place in the mental image and perceptual structure of citizens needs to be examined. The purpose of this study is to identify the effect of each of the physical components affecting the visual perception of citizens and to examine the relationship between them. The research method is "survey and correlation" and the required data have been collected through field studies such as photography, mapping and taking notes, as well as questionnaires and documentary studies. The sample size was calculated using the Cochran's formula and the available sampling method was used to complete the questionnaire. Multivariate regression test was used to analyze the data. The results indicate that the "readability" component has the greatest impact on citizens' visual perception, and in the next priorities are the "clarity" and "human scale" components. On the other hand, the "diversity in the environment" has had the least effect on the visual perception of this street. Finally, some strategies were proposed to improve the visual perception of observers in order to improve the performance of existing urban spaces in addition to creating stronger mental images of the city.

Urban spaces as one of the most important urban design products will achieve their goals once they are accepted by their users. This is in the group of citizens' space perception and then the interaction between them and space based on this perception. Hafez historic axis of Shiraz, was an integral part of shiraz spatial and functional structure. It has now undergone significant changes due to new construction and changes in city urban landscape. This has shaken the place of this historical axis, and its especially effect the citizens' visual perception of it, despite the presence of important city landmarks and symbols such as the Jahan-Nama Garden, the Tomb of Ali Ibn Hamzeh (AS), and others like that. The aim of this study is to identify the factors affecting citizens' visual perception and propose strategies to enhance their perception of the Hafez axis as a whole. This is an applied research and its method is "correlation". Data collection was done through a questionnaire, documentary and library studies. Based on theoretical foundations and basic analytical model of the research, a questionnaire was developed on the Likert scale. Its reliability was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha test and then the data were analyzed by exploratory factor analysis technic in SPSS 24 software. The results indicate that 12 factors have the most impact on the citizens' perception of urban space. The first three factors are as follows: A) Sidewalk and its components, B) Uses and activities, C) Personal attribute.

Security is one of the effective indicators for promoting the sustainability of settlements, especially the infrastructure needed for social, economic and physical prosperity in cities. This study tries to investigate the relationship between physical components affecting security and the sustainability of urban contexts, in the form of 6 components and 24 indicators. This is an applied research using survey method and correlation analyses. In order to analyze the relationship between security and the sustainability of historical contexts of the city of Yazd, the indicators of sustainability measurement were determined in 5 dimensions and then, using a questionnaire and physical data collection, the numerical value of the indicators was measured and then using the AHP technique and GIS software, the final weight of the indicators was determined and the sustainability maps were prepared. Multiple linear regression and Pearson correlation tests were to measure the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. Furthermore, the Durbin–Watson test was used to examine the auto-correlation of variables and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test was used to determine the normal distribution of research data. Additionally, ANOVA was utilized to determine the significance of the multiple regression models. Research results indicate that, overall, the historic area of Yazd is relatively resilient, and the light indicator with Beta=0.576 and social supervision with Beta=0.502 have the highest direct and meaningful relationships with the escalation of sustainability in the historical area of Yazd. Also, the indicator of comprehensibility with Beta=0.352 has the lowest correlation with sustainability in the area.

Rapid sprawl of urban areas in Iranian cities in the last few decades was the result of two population growth factors: (1) natural increase in population, and (2) migration to urban areas. These conditions are aggravated during times of transition from a pre-industrial society to an industrial one. This trend has led to a shortfall in many sectors, primarily housing. One of the innovative schemes in response to this problem in many cities like Yazd, which has received wide acknowledgement, has been “sites-and-services” scheme. In a sites-and-services scheme, the preparation of land and procurement of infrastructure and services are the responsibility of the project authorities. Depending on the investment made, resources available, the implementing agency or degree of organization of the beneficiaries, sites-and-services schemes were activated in a number of differing ways in Yazd. These types of schemes provide only what the households cannot easily get or afford themselves: a plot of land with basic, essential utilities (clean water, sanitation, flood protection, security lighting, etc.) and municipal services (waste collection, schools, etc.). Sites-and-services projects have formed the main pattern of urban development during the past decades in Yazd. However, many of these projects have had a planning oriented process, have just focused on land use planning, population density and transportation and have ignored the environmental qualities. These condition has created urban textures with very poor quality, image and townscape. Although there are references to the aesthetic aspect and its role in urban contexts in some of these layouts, what is witnessed in reality is discrepancies between buildings and spaces and, therefore, their lack of visual appeal. Meanwhile, the visual environment in urban contexts is composed of a sophisticated structure of physical and non-physical elements; it is the cognitive joint between humans and their environments; it can facilitate people’s perception and evaluation of their living context and boost their environmental comprehensibility. The objective of this research is to assess the physical indicators affecting the aesthetic component in contemporary urban developments formed as a result of site and services projects during the past four decades in different regions of Yazd. The related literature was reviewed to collect information and determine the study criteria regarding the physical indicators of aesthetic component in urban areas. The results from the literature review and observation survey served very well in codifying the variables and attributes for developing the questionnaire to examine the resident’s perception of the aesthetic components in their neighborhoods.  The questionnaire survey was done in 3 selected regions (region 10 in Imamshahr, 92 hectare project in Azadshahr and 93 hectare Kowsar project in Safayeh) that have been formed in difference times. A sample of 100 participants was selected randomly from residents in each region. Pearson correlation and regression analyses were performed. According to this study, the effect of any physical indicator is different from a region to another. Nevertheless, the width of the road and façade continuity has been mentioned in all the three studied regions. After that, visual balance and architectural style have an important role in the aesthetic component. The findings may also be used to improve the site and services scheme strategies and design guidelines regarding future urban development in Yazd and other cities in Iran.

During the past decades many design strategies have been used in urban spaces of Iranian cities to increase the inclusiveness of these spaces. But still, there are some problems and worries that many groups such as elderly citizens have when it comes to urban public spaces. One of the principles necessary in providing comfort for users of urban spaces is prompting environmental security. The pleasance of an urban spaces depends, on one hand, on being protected against danger and physical injury and, on the other, on mental protection against insecurity and fear of crime. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effects of physical components of Khan square as an urban space on sense of security in old citizens. A total of 200 people with the age of 55 and above participated in the survey. The research method used is survey type which is a type of applied study in which techniques such as library documents and references as well as Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, multiple regression and Pearson's Correlation Test are used. Findings of the research indicate that components such as security, light and urban texture have the most effect on the sense of safety in urban space.

Exacerbation of environmental problems, emergence of the economic crises and social adversity hardship inequality, as the effective historical roots in formation of theory of sustainable development, motivated the experts on urban issues to suggest some practical solutions and also some special administrative measures in order to achieve more sustainable cities. In this respect, physical compaction in cities during the 1970s and 1980s would come up as one of the basic principles of sustainable urban development and the strategies to achieve that based on sustainability principles in reaction to sporadic growth. Therefore, assessing and evaluating the compression level of the urban contexts are of the first steps in reviewing the sustainability status in the cities. So, in this study, as the first step, using the existing documents, the theoretical framework of the sustainable development and the compact city is discussed and then the identified indices for evaluating the compression level of the urban contexts will be determined, and using the Delphi method and AHP technique, the weight of each index would be determined. Finally, in order to comprehensive and integrated evaluation of the indices and assessing the compression level of the two discussed quarters in the city of Yazd, we used the GIS and the overlap analysis. The type of this research is of application and has been done by the descriptive – analytical method In Gazorgah quarter from the historical context and Forudgah quarter from the new context of the city of Yazd. According to the obtained results, in 46.77% of Gazorgah quarter, are situated in the historical context, the degree of compression is median and higher, whereas the number in Forudgah quarter is as of 38.17%. Besides, in the historical context, the distribution of the compaction is balanced and closer to the normal distribution.

“Place” is defined in urban research as “any space which people have made it meaningful”. There are different ways in which citizens ‘make places’, for example, by naming them, or modifying some elements in the urban environment to supply their needs. Sense of place, is a distinctive collection of urban qualities and characteristics – mental, visual, cultural, social, and environmental – that provide meaning to a location. Sense of place is what makes one place different from another, but sense of place is also something makes our physical surroundings worth caring about. Sense of Place has been known as an important variable in creating and developing urban public spaces. It is a phrase used to describe a building or space of special significance or meaning. It is obvious that as a quality, sense of place contains various aspects of interaction between human and place and the impact that urban spaces have on citizens. In Urban areas, sense of place is an important aspect of public life. Having a sense of place improves participation and encourages involvement within the community and helps citizens create better cities. In fact, it persuades them to be involved, to enjoy, and interact more with their surroundings. Some urban spaces, however, have been given stronger meanings, names or definitions by society than others. Places said to have a strong “sense of place” ,have a known identity and character that is deeply felt by local citizens. Nowadays, lack of attention to sense of place in the new development of cities, has led to reducing the various urban qualities such as identity, vitality and sense of belonging. As our cities and their communities grow, the less and less social interaction and social capital we may actually have. For many people, the feeling of belong to a society, is becoming a thing of the past. Places that lack a sense of place are sometimes referred to as place-less or inauthentic. Some of today’s most emergent environmental problems, such as low social interaction, the lack of a sense of belonging, public spaces destruction and social problems are rooted in ignoring sense of places. The need to resolve these problems has led to new approaches that consider the sense of place. This paper defines the concepts of sense of place and describes the factors that affect it in urban residential districts in both historical and new districts of city of Yazd. The research method here, was survey type and it is a kind of applied study in which techniques such as, library documents and references as well as Kolmogorov-Smirnov test , multiple regression and Pearson’s Correlation Test, were used. Findings of the research indicate that components such as the identity in historical districts and spatial qualities in new districts, directly increase the sense of place in neighborhood centers.

Achieving the national and regional development is an ideal desire for any community. Regarding cultural effect on development, the emergence of potentials such as cultural skills and products can significantly improve the social welfare. The main aim of this article is to evaluate the cultural development (i.e., cultural indexes) of Yazd townships during a decade (from 2002 to 2011). This investigation can be considered as an applicable research type and as analytical-descriptive study from methodological viewpoint. To this end, necessary data were obtained from evidence records and library studies, in which a numerical taxonomy technique was used in order to analyze the data. Statistically, the research included 10 townships of Yazd province in 2002 and also 11 townships of this province in 2011 according to the last country political subdivisions and official divisions of province in that year. Based upon the findings of this article, the studies show that the townships of Ardekan, Bahabad respectively in 2002 and 2011 were known as the most prosperous townships, while the townships of Tabas and Yazd were known as the non-prosperous townships. The townships such as Khatam and Tabas were under cultural development level from 2002 to 2011 and they are among non-prosperous townships. The township of Yazd in 2011 due to the high population growth and mismatch Development of cultural indicators with population growth was known as the non-prosperous township. It is necessary for the authorities to consider planning as the central role of this township in Yazd province.

In the International Leaders Gathering (2003) which was held in line with the Global Information Society, special attention was paid to electronic cities as a part of the information society. Electronic cities provide the required software, hardware and groundwork for the citizens to access the databases of public services and private sector on the web, throughout every moment of days and nights. During the last decade in Iran, efforts have been made for creating electronic cities, including the attempts for creation of Kish, Mashhad and Shiraz electronic cities; however, unfortunately due to various reasons, these cities are not developed in an appropriate manner. Success of such attempts depends largely on the rate of application by the target users (citizens). Notwithstanding the fact that governments present a relatively good level of clarity as well as an appropriate range of innovative methods of serving, nevertheless some people remain suspicious toward using information technology in communicating with the government, municipality or the private sector, so that, especially in Iran, utilization of the electronic city services depends heavily on the amount of trust of users. Therefore, the aim of the present research is to determine the factors which can increase the trust of citizens in electronic city services. The research method here has been of survey type, and it is a kind of applied study in which such techniques as questionnaire, library documents and references as well as multiple regression were utilized in order to formulate and test the hypotheses. Findings of the research indicate that such components as the citizen's higher perception of the technology and of the reliability of the organization, quality of audio and video communications, ease of use, efficacy of electronic services, years of experience in internet usage, public desire to trust, trust in government and in internet and online purchasing, directly increase the confidence in electronic cities. On the other hand, such factors as age and concerns of people about violation of their privacy have negative impact on the trust.