EXPLORING CHILD-FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENTS THROUGH MIGRANT CHILDREN’S OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFORDANCES IN A CHINESE URBAN VILLAGE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v24i43.2092Keywords:
Migrant Children, Urban Village, Affordance Theory, Child-friendly Environment, City of WuxiAbstract
Urban village accommodated a large number of migrant families in Chinese rapid urbanization, but the outdoor environments often fail to support migrant children’s daily activities and development. Migrant children living in these dense environments commonly experience limited access to safe, diverse, and child-friendly outdoor spaces. More importantly, little is known about how environmental affordances shape their outdoor activities. Guided by affordance theory, this study explores the relationship between the outdoor environment and migrant children’s activities in Liutan Village which is an urban village in Wuxi City, China. A qualitative approach was employed which combined children’s mapping, walkabout interviews and non-participant observations. Twenty-four migrant children aged 8-12 years participated in this study. The results show that migrant children mainly engaged in cognitive activities in the urban village. The playground afforded the most balanced mix of affordances, while the hanging garden and grassland provided more limited and uneven affordances. As a result, migrant children adapted their play behaviours to available conditions. It revealed the environmental deficiencies that constrained their opportunities for play, learning and social interaction. This study highlights the need for child-friendly environmental design that better supports the holistic development of migrant children in urban villages.
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