Toward a Satisfaction Criteria of Physical Changes Magnitude in the Formerly Rural Neighborhoods by the Original Inhabitants

Niavaran is one of the northern neighborhoods of Tehran that not long ago was part of the suburban rural fabric. Todays, high density and magnitude of physical changes because of new social, economic, cultural and geographical features, has transformed its character drastically. Although one of the most important areas of urban design consideration is the physical dimension and its changes over time, however residents’ long-term perception as part of place identity has not been profoundly studied. One of the main obstacles for a better understanding of how residents experience these changes is the lack of appropriate qualitative measures of satisfaction with relevant sensitivity to the magnitude of changes. The main aim of this study is the recognition of such criteria for the original inhabitants’ satisfaction as the physical changes has taken place. Therefore, understanding the process of assessing influential factors affecting resident’s perception is essential. The study adopted a mixed methods case study research design involving in-depth interviews with residents of four historical alleys in Niavaran and quantitative morphological analysis over a period of 20 years in this area. The purpose group of study was original inhabitants mainly middle aged who have lived for the past 20 years in place and aware of physical transformations. A phenomenographic approach was adopted to analyze resident's perceptions and evaluations of low and high rates of physical changes. It accompanied with deep interview for data collection, coding, classification to determine the structure of resident's perceptual experience. By combining the alley's morphological analysis with qualitative findings, an adaptive assessment of physical changes with the results of the phenomenological interpretation was provided. The results of study reveal people's different experiences and assessments in low and high degree of physical changes. The contextual and semantic-symbolic qualities in low range and livability qualities in high range of physical changes proved to have more prominent role in determining the satisfaction measures. As the intensity of change increases, the concept of homely dwelling diminishes and the residents’ sensitivity to change beyond their control greatly decreases. Despite repetition, some elements do not become part of residents’ reference system and consequent dissatisfaction with them may occur. Other elements, however, may gradually become incorporated into their reference framework and experienced as satisfactory. The identification of factors affecting satisfaction should be based not only on previous research and on review of theoretical principles, but also on affective appraisal from the existing residents of a particular environment. It is notable that changes in unique environmental values such as landscape and mountain’s view corridors are not at any level bearable by the inhabitants. The resulting measures and criteria would contribute to establish urban guidelines for physical changes with high environmental residents’ satisfaction. This is particularly significant since it is common trend in several transforming neighborhoods in Iranian cities. The findings are particularly pertinent in the preparation of local development documents and any physical development policy as a ground to urban design projects on neighborhood.