Psychology of Architecture

Generally, it is the effect of mind of an individual and the outcome of which is seen in his/her mind. Every person in the world is entirely different from the other regarding nature and behavior. On the other hand, architecture refers to both the product and process of planning, designing and constructing the structure, ambiance, and space whose sole objective is to represent social, technical and aesthetical considerations. Also, it can be defined as the art adopted in the creation of either closed or open space. It is important to explore different ways of how we become aware of space so that it becomes easier to understand the relationship that exists. The forms of building, functions involved in such building designs, colors, positive and adverse in and outside it are perceived as some issues, but architecture is directly connected to the psychology of a human being right from conscious to subconscious standards (Elyacoubi & Elyasse, 1999).

Human psychology is affected by numerous components of architecture such as the form of the building, landscapes, positive spaces, negative spaces, green technology, colors, sound construction, openings, lighting, and acoustics. 2 Statement of the problem The research will be majorly concerned with effects of architecture on human psychology and suggest some ways of improving architectural designs to improve the behavior and productivity of human being especially in educational buildings. There are different components of architecture that determine the behaviours and productivity of a human being such as the form of the building, landscapes, positive spaces, negative spaces, green technology, colors, sound construction, openings, lighting, and acoustics. Such components play a significant role in determining the productivity of learners in the educational buildings.

What are some of the methods that can be used to improve environmental architecture that can help in enhancing human behavior and productivity in educational buildings? 1. 4 Objective of the research 1. 1 Main Objective The main objective of this research is to determine the effect of architecture on human psychology and different ways of improving environmental architecture to enhance human behavior and productivity in the educational buildings. 2 Specific Objectives 1. To determine the effect of poor acoustical conditions on the performance/productivity of individuals in educational buildings 2. Nevertheless, human beings do not only attempt to thrive with their surrounding passively, but they try to change it actively to correspond their immediate needs by acting as a team or at a personal level, “leading to characteristic interaction effects which vary over time, situations and persons” (Elyacoubi, 1999).

On the other hand, surrounding environment is perceived as the context of reactions and behavior. According to Bell, “our moods and behaviors are meaningful only if they can be understood regarding their context. ” Therefore, the relationship between human behavior and physical environment is directly connected. The book ‘Interior Design & Beyond’ by Knackstedt explains how interior designs of a building affect the behavior of a human being. 1 Effects of Light Although there is a need for architectures to learn the functioning of the human eye during the process of light perception, their core objective to analyze light from the psychological and ecological perspective. There are two fundamental types of light; direct (radiant) and indirect (ambient) light. Direct light penetrates via different media with different rates of interference while the indirect light is composed of the light reflected from human surroundings.

The other two forms of light that are important to the architectures is natural and artificial sources of light. Natural light is the most appropriate and recommended source of light for physiological and psychological human health. Therefore, color serves as the main components of design that affect the psychological functioning of a human being. Research by Varley shows that “there is some evidence to suggest that light of different colors entering the eye can indirectly affect the center of emotions in the hypothalamus, which in turn affects the pituitary gland. This master gland controls the entire endocrine system, including the thyroid and sex glands, and so controls the harmonic levels of this system and the moods consequent upon them” (Varley, 1980). Therefore these psychological effects are of concern to the designers and architects.

Further research shows that colors have a strong influence on the human physiology and emotion. ” Therefore, noise is believed to be the main cause of stress among individual in the society or within the learning environment. According to a recent survey, prolonged exposure to noise could be the primary cause of some chronic diseases. The further survey shows that noise can make an individual emotionally reactive because it is associated with the hormones that trigger psychological and emotional status. According to research by Stansfield, “noise sensitivity is related to annoyance at varying levels of noise and is associated with psychological disorders and mental health” (Bell et al. CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4. On the other hand, the effects of acoustics will be determined by comparing educational buildings built ten years ago in Brazil according to different standards of building academic institutions.

This will involve selecting learners and other academic stakeholders and engage them in an interview or fill the questionnaires concerning how noise affects their performance and psychological well-being. The time of reverberation, coefficients of sound insulation and indirect noise will be correlated to international recommended standards. To test the effect of colors, the respondents chosen will be exposed to different colors, such as red, black and green before subjecting them to an interview and giving them questionnaires to fill. The respondents will be allowed to give opinions concerning the effect of different colors painted on the educational buildings, either warm or cool colors. The secondary data sources will include data that already exists and has been collected by other researchers concerning the same issue within the scope area, like previous studies carried out.

This will be made available from materials published and electronically stored information. 2 Data Instruments 3. 1 Primary Data Instruments Structured Questionnaires The study will involve well-designed questionnaires which will be self-administered to randomly selected respondents within the scope area. Targeted in the questionnaire will be the students, teachers, and other education stakeholders who are aware indirectly affected by poor architectural designs in Brazil. It helps in reducing data to an intelligible and interpretable form using statistics. Considering this research, the analysis of data will be done using descriptive technique, content analysis, and correlation models. The data in its orderliness will involve putting everything together so that the same can be processed through the editing process. This will involve going through the filled questionnaires to make sure dates are in order and consistent with other information collected to help in tabulation and coding.