Built Environment Flashcards
What research shows noise to be a stressor in the built environment ?
- Cohen
- Studied children who lived in Bridge apartments in New York (busy road)
- Upper floor had less noise
- Looked at children’s hearing ability and scores on school tests
- Lower floor had poorer ability
- Reading affects performance in schools and thus wellbeing in general
What research shows overcrowding to be a stressor in the built environment ?
- Bickman
- Dropped stamped addressed envelopes in high, medium or low student density halls
- Highest proportion posted in low condition (more helpful)
- Newman and McCauley
- People make more eye contact with a stranger in rural towns than big cities
What research shows commuting to be a stressor in the built environment ?
- Office of National Statistics
- Commuters have lower life satisfaction, lower sense that their daily activities are worthwhile, lower happiness
- Worst with journeys of 60-90 mins
How can green spaces improve wellbeing ?
- White (2013)
- 17-year study which found individuals reported less mental stress and higher life satisfaction when living in greener areas.
What is Altman’s privacy theory ?
- Altman
- We manage interactions with others in order to achieve an optimal level of privacy
- Links to levels of arousal - we use social markers (eg turning away) and physical markers (like hedges and doors)
Why is it difficult to study the impact of nature on our wellbeing ?
- Uncontrolled Varibles: lifestyle, income and employment
- Studies don’t include control groups
How can nature impact our wellbeing ?
- Recent studies have stressed participants and then exposed them to either a natural or built environment
- A change in their stress levels shows the positive effect of nature.
- Ulrich argues positive responses are triggered when certain features are present – such as vegetation, depth and texture
- This provides a break from stress and reduced levels of arousal.
- This could be rooted in human evolution (biological preparedness)
What was the Aim of Ulrich’s study ?
-To find out if the view hospital patients have through their window might affect their recovery from surgery.
What was Ulrich’s Sample ?
-46 patients in a suburban Pennsylvanian hospital – all of whom had bladder surgery.
What was Ulrich’s method ?
- Patients look at brick wall or trees
- Same nurses were assigned to all rooms on each floor.
- All the rooms were identical, except for the view.
- Five types of information were taken from each record – length of stay, number and strength of painkillers needed, number and strength of anxiety medication, minor complications and all nurses notes on the patient’s condition.
What were the results of Ulrich’s study ?
- Tree-view patients spent less time in the hospital – 7.96 days
- Nurses comments were characterised as positive spirits
- Tree-view patients took fewer painkillers
What was concluded from Ulrich’s study ?
- The natural scene can be seen to have had some therapeutic influence.
- However the ‘built’ view in this study was very monotonous
- Cannot be sure the same effect would be seen with a lively city view.
How can contemporary urban renewal be used to improve wellbeing ?
- Rachel and Steven Kaplan
- Research effects of nature on people’s relationships and health
- ART theory has an impact
- People can concentrate better spending time in nature or looking at it
How can colour improve wellbeing ?
- Lighter coloured rooms are seen as more open and spacious
- Colour known as Baker-Miller Pink lowers aggression levels
- Bennet- found prisoners aggression lowered in pink cell than a magnolia one
How is there ethnocentrism in this area of study ?
- Environment not the same in all cultures
- Learnt behaviour, not innate in biology
