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Self Discovery
What is Neuroarchitecture? Evidence, Methods, Misconceptions and the Research Behind the Term
This article offers one way of mapping neuroarchitecture as it appears in academic publications from roughly the past twenty-five years. It is not a final definition of the field, nor a claim that the boundaries are settled. Rather, it traces the patterns that become visible when we look at peer-reviewed research, reviews, and scholarly publications that connect architecture with neuroscience, physiology, cognition, and behaviour.
May 114 min read
A Pluralistic Guide to the Psychology of Place: Recommended Readings on Environmental Psychology, Placemaking and Architectural Design
This pluralistic introductory reading guide brings together foundational texts on the psychology of place, from environmental psychology and behavioural research to phenomenology, neuroarchitecture and urban studies. Ideal for architects, designers and students seeking to understand how people perceive, experience and respond to the built environment.
Nov 23, 20259 min read
Architecture as a System: Applying Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory to the Built Environment
Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (1979) provides a framework for considering the multiple, interacting settings that shape behaviour, cognition, and wellbeing across the lifespan; from immediate physical spaces to broader socio-cultural contexts.
This blog will delve into the theory, its origins, key terms, and relevance to architectural and spatial design. We will also explore how the theory applies to practical design work.
Jun 28, 20259 min read
Gibson’s Affordance Theory in Architecture: Understanding the Design of Possibility
What does a staircase suggest you do? What does a bench quietly invite? In architectural design, not all communication happens through words. Some cues are built into the very shape and material of the environment itself. James J. Gibson’s Affordance Theory offers a way of understanding these unspoken signals, how we instinctively grasp what a space enables, invites, or discourages.
May 18, 20257 min read
Evidence-based Practice: From research to design implementation
Evidence-based Design (EBD) is the process of basing decisions about the built environment on credible research to achieve the best possi...
Sep 25, 20226 min read
Sociopetal and Sociofugal Space: How Spatial Arrangement Shapes Social Interaction
More than sixty years after Osmond first described sociopetal and sociofugal space, the distinction remains useful because it draws attention to something fundamental: architecture arranges relationships between people. Plans show walls, furniture, circulation and thresholds.
20 hours ago11 min read
Which Affordance? Three questions for navigating different ways of thinking about affordances
Perhaps this is the wrong question. What I am finding is that the different uses of affordance are not competing definitions of the same thing. They often make different aspects of the organism-environment relationship available for investigation.
Sep 310 min read
Architecture as a System: Applying Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory to the Built Environment
Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (1979) provides a framework for considering the multiple, interacting settings that shape behaviour, cognition, and wellbeing across the lifespan; from immediate physical spaces to broader socio-cultural contexts.
This blog will delve into the theory, its origins, key terms, and relevance to architectural and spatial design. We will also explore how the theory applies to practical design work.
Jun 28, 20259 min read
Gibson’s Affordance Theory in Architecture: Understanding the Design of Possibility
What does a staircase suggest you do? What does a bench quietly invite? In architectural design, not all communication happens through words. Some cues are built into the very shape and material of the environment itself. James J. Gibson’s Affordance Theory offers a way of understanding these unspoken signals, how we instinctively grasp what a space enables, invites, or discourages.
May 18, 20257 min read
Integrating insights from Psychology into Design: Three facets of Design Research in Architecture.
Christopher Frayling’s three facets of Design Research include Research into, through, and for Design. They represent different approaches..
May 30, 20238 min read
A Pluralistic Guide to the Psychology of Place: Recommended Readings on Environmental Psychology, Placemaking and Architectural Design
This pluralistic introductory reading guide brings together foundational texts on the psychology of place, from environmental psychology and behavioural research to phenomenology, neuroarchitecture and urban studies. Ideal for architects, designers and students seeking to understand how people perceive, experience and respond to the built environment.
Nov 23, 20259 min read
Book Review: Applying Psychology To the Environment
Applying Psychology To the Environment was originally published in 1998 by Hodder & Stoughton as part of a larger series of books.....
Jul 24, 20228 min read
Theories & Studies
Fundamentals
Book Summaries & Reviews
A Pluralistic Guide to the Psychology of Place: Recommended Readings on Environmental Psychology, Placemaking and Architectural Design
This pluralistic introductory reading guide brings together foundational texts on the psychology of place, from environmental psychology and behavioural research to phenomenology, neuroarchitecture and urban studies. Ideal for architects, designers and students seeking to understand how people perceive, experience and respond to the built environment.
Nov 23, 20259 min read
Integrating insights from Psychology into Design: Three facets of Design Research in Architecture.
Christopher Frayling’s three facets of Design Research include Research into, through, and for Design. They represent different approaches..
May 30, 20238 min read
Architecture Portfolio Design Guide.
As final submissions and upcoming job hunts are fast approaching, it is that time of the year when questions about portfolio design, job ...
Apr 30, 20229 min read
Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs”: Theory Outline (Part 1)
Abraham Maslow's Theory of Human Motivation was first proposed in 1943 following a biographical analysis of people he considered successful.
Jan 10, 20229 min read
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