Performance and appropriation of residential streets and public open spaces

The study aims to identify the compositional and contextual factors that affect appropriation of urban open spaces, in order to assess which of these factors influence more intensively type and intensity of use in the urban spaces evaluated. Performance evaluations were carried out in streets and public open spaces located in three residential areas characterised by differences in cultural and socio-economic aspects, and aspects related to physical characteristics, located in the city Campo Grande, Brazil. Methodological procedures included mental maps, interviews, physical measurements, observations of behaviour, and questionnaires, which were responded to by residents in the sampling areas and users of the three public open spaces investigated. The analysis of relationships between individuals' characteristics, environmental attributes and level of appropriation of streets and public open spaces suggest that type and intensity of use of residential streets are more strongly affected by compositional factors, while contextual factors affect the level of appropriation of public open spaces more intensively. The results contribute to the existing knowledge and outline recommendations that might support the social life dynamics of urban spaces.