Neighborhood Environment and Residential Satisfaction in Urban Regeneration: A Critical Review and Future Research Agenda

Abstract

Urban regeneration is increasingly assessed through residents’ experiences alongside physical and economic outcomes. This critical review synthesizes evidence on how neighborhood environmental conditions and resident satisfaction have been conceptualized, measured, and related in regeneration research. Sixty-three peer-reviewed empirical studies were identified through structured searches of Scopus and the Web of Science Core Collection. Environmental factors were grouped into six overlapping domains covering housing and infrastructure; accessibility, mobility, facilities, and services; public, green, and natural environments; maintenance, management, cleanliness, and safety; social and relational environments; and participation, governance, and regeneration processes. Fifteen studies examined satisfaction with regeneration projects, programs, or implementation processes and were treated separately from residential, neighborhood, housing, living-environment, and domain-specific satisfaction. Across the six domains, findings included favorable, mixed, unfavorable, and context-dependent relationships. Important gaps remain: only five studies used explicit longitudinal or before–after designs, and 15 combined perceived measures with objective or spatial indicators. Greater conceptual clarity, more longitudinal evidence, mixed-measure approaches, and stronger attention to contextual differences are needed in future research.