Accepting the influence of human behaviour and experience on the process’s end result has been a cornerstone of design evolution since the dawn of time. We are currently dealing with a concept of urban space that goes beyond a typical collection of characteristics. The atmosphere in urban areas and end users’ knowledge of it has only increased the possibilities for exploring the interdependence between architecture and psychology.
Architectural psychology observes human behavior in a constructed environment in order to develop a link between the person and the place planned for their usage in order to determine the advantages and negatives of the same in terms of functionality and capacity to serve its intended function. This eventually becomes the communication channel between the designer and the ultimate user of the product.
“Architecture is about public spaces held by building.”, quoted Ar. Richard Rogers. The individuality of urban spaces is relative to the building architecture, directly or indirectly. The urban spaces have their own tangibles and tangibles in the building architecture. The tangibles and intangibles vary for every individual, based on how they react, how to connect, and how they reflect. All small detailed things are connected to human perception and then reflected in their behavior and actions.
Urban Physicality and Human Behaviour
The Urban physicality and Human behavior research within built environment disciplines seeks to investigate and debate questions of urban form and its relationship to social life and human behavior in order to provide insights and frameworks to support sustainable, liveable, and flourishing cities. The objective is to resurrect behavior-based urban research, focusing on public space and human well-being, and advocating for the significance of understanding the value of places above items, as well as cross-disciplinary collaborations. The municipal structure and the possibilities for public life are inextricably linked.
There is universal recognition in urban planning and design research and practice that the built environment has an impact on the lives and well-being of communities and individuals. Opinions on the function of such surroundings in affecting conduct, particularly as they may contribute to desirable social purposes, range significantly. While historian John Archer stated that architecture and urbanism shape human behavior, sociology professor Herbert Gans believed that architecture and urbanism cannot fix society’s issues through design.
To achieve a balance between those competing viewpoints, one must delve into concerns of urban design and social life, i.e., people’s well-being, as well as climate change and energy issues, which are high on the agenda. Aside from the reality that human behavior and social life are molded by a complex web of other economic, political, cultural, ethnic, and other ties and conditions, it is difficult not to accept that the built environment also plays an essential role.
There is no question that physical design and social behavior are inextricably linked. Just as deep structures appeared to shape our cities’ social patterns, ‘deep structures’ appear to define the organization of their architectural surroundings. To make decisions about the shape and form of various environmental settings in urban planning, designers must understand the connection between environment and behavior–how diverse configurations of the built environment might influence preferences and behaviors. This is the emphasis and scope of environmental psychology.
Environmental Psychology
Environmental psychology is a multidisciplinary social science that investigates the interaction between humans and their surroundings. It considers how we shape our natural and manmade environments, as well as how those environments shape us.
Through environmental psychology various aspects of design from the user perspective can be understood and reflected into the design. Environmental design is the approach that the study is reflected into. The process of addressing surrounding environmental elements when developing plans, programs, policies, buildings, or goods is known as environmental design. It aims to develop spaces that improve the ecological, social, cultural, and physical environments of specific areas.
The urban environment must be constructed with the people who will utilize it for decades to come in mind. Social, cultural, and political variables all have an impact on psychological well-being. The layout, size, and scale of the room all have a profound impact on both the physical and psychological levels. The crowd is heavily influenced by constraints and poorly constructed locations.
Instead, then being only practical, design should include more elements. Patterns, colors, curves, and green areas should be embraced, but barren facades, unsheltered spaces, and harsh edges should be avoided because architecture helps us feel how we evaluate and conceive environments, which can only be experienced. It is time to build cities holistically in order to make them more liveable than just urban clutter.
A successful urban place is one that is not just usable but also lovable. Not only is it consistent with user behavior, but it also grants people the right to obtain public control. Participation and alteration, as well as giving meaning to the area, are all ways to make the space meaningful.
There are new difficulties for urban design practice and theory.The need to rethink and adapt urban design techniques to an ever-changing public life is likely the most pressing. That is, the urban design must be far more sensitive to all sites and the advantageous spatial, sensory, and social qualities that people use and that might stimulate pleasant connections. Public life is created, negotiated, and contested in those places and with those elements.
With the Increased concern for city planning’s “human behavioral dimension” reveals a distinct and strong need for greater “urban quality.” There are direct links between improvements for people in city spaces and visions for vibrant, safe, sustainable, and healthy cities.
