To Look or Not To Look: Reading User Behavior in the Spatial Atmosphere of the City Skyline of Izmir

Abstract

This study focuses on the effects of spatial qualities of the viewing location on the behavior of citizens towards the observation of the skylines. The majority of the existing literature on skyline studies revolves around the discussions of the aesthetic qualities of the skyline per se and ignores the observation space. Nevertheless the differences in citizens' behavior towards viewing the skyline stem not only from their diverse personal characteristics and daily emotional states but also from the spatial qualities of the viewing space. This study addresses this gap in the literature with its concentration on the qualities of the urban spaces from which the city skyline is viewed. The objective of this study therefore is to fill this gap by discussing the ultimate behavioral decisions of experiencers in viewing the Izmir skyline from the perspective of the spatial characteristics of the Karşıyaka coastline as an observation location. In doing so the study first focuses on the atmosphere theories where the reciprocal relationship between the qualities of experienced space and its experiencers become dominant. Through observations in the Karşıyaka coastline the reciprocal relationship leads to the definition of the spatial factors as layers of analysis which are based on the transformation of the spatial layers of the experienced space and the behavioral decisions of the experiencers. Then to better comprehend their relationships Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is utilized to analyze the observational data. The study by merging the spatial atmosphere and contemplative neuroaesthetic theories provides a new framework for the upcoming skyline-based studies. Moreover the outcomes of the analysis demonstrate that the contrast between day and night city skyline viewing in the Karşıyaka coastline emerges as a point of reference for lighting proving to be the most impactful factor among all layers. © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.