Integrating the SBE–SD Method and Eye-Tracking Analysis for Evaluating Visual Experience in Traditional Village Heritage Landscapes

Rapid urbanization has posed significant challenges to the conservation and sustainable management of heritage landscapes. This study integrates the Scenic Beauty Estimation–Semantic Differential (SBE–SD) method with eye-tracking (ET) analysis to establish a subjective–objective framework for evaluating visual experiences in heritage landscapes, using the traditional villages of Hongcun and Xidi in Anhui Province, China, as case studies. A total of 117 participants completed the eye-tracking experiment, while 374 respondents with varied demographic and prior-visitation backgrounds participated in the SBE–SD questionnaire survey based on 28 representative landscape photographs. The results indicate that different landscape types exhibit distinct eye-tracking characteristics, with visual attention primarily concentrated on dominant architectural structures and visually salient landscape elements. Significant associations were identified between subjective visual quality evaluations and ET indicators, particularly fixation frequency (FF) and proportion of fixation duration (PFD). Associations were also observed between landscape perception dimensions and visual attention metrics, highlighting the relationship between perceived landscape characteristics and gaze behavior. The correspondence between ET results and SBE–SD evaluations supports the value of integrating subjective and objective approaches in heritage landscape assessment. Overall, the findings demonstrate the potential of eye-tracking as a complementary quantitative approach for understanding the visual quality of traditional village landscapes and provide practical implications for heritage conservation and landscape planning.