Architectural Psychology is the study of interactions and interrelationships between humans (both individually and collectively) and their physical environment. The principles of Architectural Psychology provide a means to examine the effects of the built environment on the cognitive, affective, and behavioral domains of human experience. At APEX.1 we are particularly interested in the ways that one’s physical environment can affect such things as the subjective experience of a particular physical environment, interactions with others, the amount of stress experienced in a particular setting, the amount of stress relief provided by a particular setting, etc.
About the term Architectural Psychology:
Architectural refers to the built environment. It is the art and science of building design; developing and planning for specific functions and arranging elements within the physical environment. This typically includes numerous design considerations and a variety of architectural systems and components. For example, exterior presentation, aesthetics, room layout, lighting, thermal conditions, color, acoustics, texture, etc.
Psychology refers to an individual’s experience of the physical environment and the impact of such experience on their psychological well-being. It also refers to perceptual factors (visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile) that impact one’s definition and experience of their environment and includes cognitive, affective, and behavioral components.
- Cognitive refers to one’s thoughts or beliefs about a particular setting and how the physical environment conveys certain “messages” that define the setting.
- Affective refers to one’s emotional response to the setting; it is a reflection of the way an environment “feels.”
- Behavioral refers to the behaviors exhibited in response to the setting.
Physical Environment refers to one’s surroundings, the effects of which are extensive. For example, the effect of crowded personal space, the effect of design (room size, layout, placement), or the effect of external stimuli (temperature, noise). One’s physical environment is a vast source of information that has the potential to impact the three related domains of cognition, affect, and behavior.
