And How Does That Make You Feel....

Continuing the topic from the beginning of the week Evidence Based Design involves lots of research.  This research will take the designer through different fields. One of those fields is psychology, which gives an insight on how people react to certain environments.   These reactions could be for the best interest of the person or be harmful to someone. While doing some more research into EBD I found some cool facts about ho interior environments affect the behavior of people in them:

•  Food shoppers spend more money when circulation is clockwise
•  Mall Pedestrians tend to walk on the right side
• The close seats at sporting events create a  friendship with strangers
• Colors create the mood of the space (bright warm colors give excitement, whereas cooler colors give more of a soothing and calming effect)
• Dim lighting evokes a relaxed feeling
• Furniture allows for a division of rank among employees
• Less furniture allows for a feeling of openness (a therapist office does not have a big desk in the middle of the room so that the client will be more willing to relax and open-up)
• Natural lighting also a gives a more relaxed feeling

(note that the above facts were found on the following web pages and not part of my own research: http://ezinearticles.com/?Interior-Design-Psychology&id=993205, http://designbuildsource.com.au/psychology-interior-design, http://www.iida.org/resources/category/1/1/1/6/documents/sp10-ebd.pdf)

Having better understanding of how an individual uses a space and their reactions to certain types of situations helps the designer make their decisions about the outcome of the project to better serve the people that will be utilizing the space.

Interior Design is all about the health, safety and welfare of everyone individual  in a space. The research will never just stop on what is the style trend of today, but goes beyond that and continues until every aspect of a space is aesthetically pleasing while  keeping stress levels down, keeping the environment hygienic, and making layouts such as office buildings, hospitals, grocery stores, and schools easy for people to navigate. Next time you walk into a space and think that something is conveniently located or you leave with a smile on your face just remember that the designer of that space did their research to make things better for you.