Evaluation of Quality of Life in Urban Life Circles from a Composite Perspective of Subjective Needs and the Supply of Public Amenities: A Case Study of Changbai Island, Shenyang

Abstract

Evaluating the quality of life in life circles is an important prerequisite for effective life circle governance. Most studies evaluate the quality of life in life circles from either the living environment or public amenity supply perspective, and few adopt a composite perspective of these. This study developed an index system for evaluating the quality of life in life circles from both these perspectives, based on data from Changbai Island, Shenyang. We measured the living environment, amenity service, and quality of life indexes of urban life circles and analysed the spatial relationship between the living environment and amenity services, as well as the spatial effect of public amenities on the quality of life in communities. The findings are summarised as follows: (1) Quality of life tends to decline radially from the east to surrounding areas; (2) Life circles in Changbai Island are arranged in the following descending order according to the quality of life: life circles IV and II (equal), life circle III, and life circle I; (3) Various types of public amenities produce differentiated effects on the quality of life in life circles; specifically, middle schools can significantly improve the quality of life in surrounding communities, whereas community hospitals, large supermarkets, and community shops can have adverse effects if they are extremely close to residential areas. Our findings provide empirical evidence for evaluating the quality of life in urban life circles, evaluating methodology, and referencing for life circle governance.