Perceptual Differences Across Urban, Suburban, and Rural Residents: A Residential-Context-Based Study on the Recognition of Tea Culture and Landscapes

Japan’s ongoing socio-spatial transformation has led to the decline of rural cultures and traditional rural landscapes (TRLs), necessitating alternative approaches to revitalize rural communities. Reinforcing inter-regional urban–rural connections could offer a path to rural revitalization and sustainable regional resilience. This study investigated such perspectives through a large-scale survey (n = 1704) and statistically analyzed the perceptual differences of residents across residential contexts regarding their cultural knowledge, daily practices, consumption preferences, and landscape recognition, represented by traditional tea culture in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Results demonstrated significant residential-context-based differences. Although rural residents showed the deepest understanding and recognition of tea culture and landscapes, they failed to express such perceptual knowledge with confidence. By contrast, suburban residents presented moderate familiarity without deep understanding. Urban residents relied greatly on symbolic representations of rural culture and landscapes, but without distinct recognition. Although all groups showed high levels of interest in tea culture, they generally presented a lack of deep understanding regarding Zairai tea fields, a representative TRL in the region, indicating both its physical decline due to agricultural modernization and its diminishing cultural visibility. Overall, the findings of this study highlight the differentiated perceptions shaped by different residential contexts. By clarifying both perceptual commonalities and divergences that exist among these residential groups, this study provides a new perspective on reconstructing culturally rooted urban–rural connections to contribute to the revitalization of rural communities, culture, and the conservation of TRLs in the region.