Lecture 7 Flashcards
What is environmental perception
- How we percieve and mentally represent the world around us.
- How do we make sense in the world we find ourselves in and interact with
- The environment is not a simple stimulus - infinitely complex
What are the three models discussed when considering Environmental perception
- Lens model (Brunswick)
- Theory of Affordances (Gibson)
- Perception of Affordances (Norman)
What is the Lens Model (Brunskwik)
This theory is about SURVIVEABILITY
- If we find ourselves in an envrionment, we have to make a decision “is this safe?”. We need to understand the environment in order to function effectively.
- As such, there are an infinite number of cues in the envrionment and you have to pick the correct cue in order to make a correct assessment of the environment
This theory is about ACHIEVEMENT - how close are you, in terms of your perception and the state of the environment
- the degree of accurate perception of the environment (achievement) is dependent on:
1. ecological validity - whether the cues correctly reflect the state of teh environment
2. cue utilisation - the degree to which appropriate cues are used
Why is the Lens Model a probabalistic model?
When you have cues, there is an imperfect relationship between the cues and the state of the environment.
Why is the Lens model not common in environmental psychology?
It has been used, but it is quite hard to apply to how we interact with the envrionment because its hard to know the true state of the environment
- more abut perception
- hard to know if there are high levels of achievement or not
Useful for medical diagnosis, interpersonal interactiosn and decisin making (Loeb et al., 1999)
Gibsons Thoery of Affordances - What did he argue?
Gibson argues that perception is far more direct and less interpretive.
- The moment we are born, we interact with the environment and we learn whats around us and what we can do with the environment (physical properties of the environment)
- Rather than having a picture of the environment with several cues that we need to combine to perceive, Gibson argues that we learn what certain types of envrionments are and what you can do with them
What is affordance theory?
- Perception of the environment is direct without sensory or cognitive mediation
- People perceive objects in terms of the opportunities they offer
- An afforance is a quality of an object or an environmnet that allows an individual to perform an action
e.g. THROWABILITY of a baseball Vs basketball depends on different characterisics (size, shape, weight, grip)
In terms of perceptions of the world, you percieve patterns and know what to do with them (stairs, bench)
Transient approach to Affordance theory
Theres a transaction based on the needs and what the physical properties allows you to do.
e.g. using a bench to sit, play, skateboard - depends on the need and what we can do with the bench
What is Perception of affordances Theory (Norman, 1988)
The design of everyday things
- Norman argues that the design of objects act as a communication between the object and the perciever
- A design communicates the action that you can perfrom with the object that is designed.
Its not just whether the object has affordances or not, but also whether the affordance communicated its use/is observable or not
The PERCEPTUAL dimension of the perception of affordances
This theory is the perceptual dimension of the original theory
Perceptible affordance = the design of something DOES communicate what to do with it (e.g. door handle example)
- Theory propses 4 outcomes with a affordance
1. Perceptual information - YES, Affordance - NO = false affordances
2. Perceptual information - YES, Affordance - YES = Perceptible affordance
3. Perceptual information - NO, Affordance - NO = Correct rejection
4. Perceptual information - NO, Affordance - YES = Hidden affordances
Lockton et al., (2010) Perception of affordance theory to sustainable behaviour
They found that reshaping holes on bins to match the ‘form’ of differen types of waste has been shown to increase recycling levels significantly
Duffy et al., Perception of affordance theory to sustainable behaviour
Compared whether rubbish thrown in the bin was correct or not when the bin lid was removed (normal hole) Vs the lid had designs which chnaged the communication of how to interact with these bins. The perceptin of glass/cans/plastic bottles increased when the bin was shaped like a bottle hole
- Absent lid = 57% glass, cans, plastic
- Present lid = 92% of glass, cans and plastic
How has the perception of affordance theory been used negatively?
Hostile Architecture
- arms purposely put on benches to stop homeless people sleeping on benches
Clark and Uzell (2002): Affordance of envrionmnet for adolescents
What do different places ‘mean’ to people in terms of ‘action possbilities’
- Assessed how adolescents use different public spaces (home, neighbourhood, school, city centre) for different needs. The two developmental needs they were interested in were:
1. Need for social interaction
2. Need for retreat
Findings:
- The neighbourhod, school and city centre was used for both social interaction and retreat
- The home environment was used for security ad friend retreat
BUT there was dynamics within this - Big depedence on year group
What are the three theories discussed when considering Envrionmental Aethetics
- Habitat theory
- Formal Aethetic model
- Model of environmental preference
The Biophilia hypothesis underlies all these theories
What is the Biophilia hypothesis?
We have an innate affinity with other living things. We like living things!!
- there is a preference for environments that sustain a lot of life, provides surviveability and evolutionary needs
- can explain why greenspaces have restorative functions
Evidence for the Biophilia hypothesis
- Biophobia - lots of objects, environments, situations and animals that we dislike. Such ‘phobias’ are often towards animals, environments or situations that might be potentially dangerous
- Lorence & Tinbergen (1951) conducted experiments to assess whether animals have an instinctive dislike of certain shapes of animals. In the study they took types of turkeys that had never saw other turkey types. They flew them from left to right or right to left.
- The turkey signalled threats when flown left to right (representing an eagle shape)
- As it couldnt have been socialised, theres this evolutionary trait that these turkey chicks have for what is threatening to them
What is Habitat theory? (Orians & Heerwagan, 1993)
- Humans evolved in the African Savanna, and has therefore become the preferred visual landscape. There is an evolutionary need to like environments with resources (food) and low-risk (shelter).
- A savanna is a very open landscape, you can see whats going on, with lots of places to hide and with food and water
The prospect refuge theory (Appleton, 1975)
This is another Habitat theory
This theory propses that specific characteristics determine preference for landscape:
1. PROSPECT - panaramas or vistas
2. REFUGE - hides and shelters
He explained this by studying paintings of the environment
- This theory is based on the idea that we have paintings, paintings provide aethetics and the aesthetic is what we like and what we want (water, live stock and picture being salutongenic)
The Formal Aethetic Model (Berlyne, 1974)
Berlyne was the first psychologist to assess why we like certain things. He was interested in abstract psychological characteristics that determine preferences for stimuli/environments
- proposed the COLLATIVE VARIABLES: aspects of stimuli/environments that cause the perciever to pay attention:
1. novelty
2. suprisingness
3. incongruity
4. complexity
We have a preference for MODERATE collative properties (inverted U effect)
The moderate effect of the collative properties
This inverted U effect was linked to Yerkes and Dodson’s arousal theory
- Where you fall on the curve, depdning on the collative variable present, determines the type of motivation/exploration/how you interact with the environment
1. low aethetic judgemnet and low prescence of a CV = diversive exploration (you seek arousal)
2. Moderate aethetic judgement and moderate prescence of a CV = motivation to achieve the highest hedonistic value
3. low aethetic judgement and high prescence of a CV = reduced arousal
Kaplan et al., (1972) and the Formal Aethetic Model
Used Berlynes model but with pictures of natural environments or urban envrioments.
Found that natural environmnets are preferred over urban environmnets. At the same level of complexity, we prefer natural envrionments much more. Did not find a curvilinear relationship however (relationship was simply linear) - the more complex th picture is, the more we like it
The Model of Environmental Preference (Kaplan et al., 1987)
We like environments that allow us to process information
* This was based on a research programme that staryed with studying the collative properties of real environments:
1. Mystery - the idea that we dont have the full infomration but you learn more by venturing out into the enviroment
2. Coherence - when things arent in lace, they are less liked (linked to berlynes colative property of incongruity)
3. Complexity - the greater the complexity in the natural envirnmnet, the greater the preference
4. Legibility - the degree to which the viewer can predict the content of the scene
What is the model of environmental preference (draw it)
NEEDS
- making sense
- Involvement
AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION
- present or immediate
- future or promised
This is a 2x2matrix
Draw and Explain the model of environmental preference matrix
NEEDS
- making sense
- Involvement
AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION
- present or immediate
- future or promised
This is a 2x2matrix
According to Kaplan, humans have a string desire to understand and explore an environmnet. Environmnets may offer this promise immediately or in the future. Combining understanding/exploring and immediate/future promises results in this 2x2 matrix of environmnetal preference with the 4 collative properties
Stamps et al., (2004)
Carried out a meta-analysis, assessing all studies available that looked at the 4 collative properties. They found that there is an average relationship. BUT, the differences are so massive the results were all over the place - The variation in the correlations are so vast that there is no consistent evidence
What theories are considered when discussing Restorative envrionments?
- Stress recovery theory (Ulrich)
- Attention Resoration Theory (Kaplan)
- Perceptual fluency account (Joye)
What is the stress recovery theory?
natural envrionments allow you to recover from stress.
- If you get exposed to greenery or nature, leads to lower blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension
- This doesnt only apply to ‘real’ greenery but can also relate to pcitures of greenery - you still see physiological effects
Nakamura & Fuji (1990) evidence of SRT
Shows Ps pictures of flower pots and measured EEG response.
The more greenery, the more calming the EEG wave
Urich et al., (1991) Recovery from stress in a natural orurban envrionment
Phase 1 - Stress induction
- Ps watched a 10 min clip on the prevention of workplace accidents
Phase 2 - Resoration
- Ps were told to relax by watching a film of
1. urban environment with traffic
2. urban envriomnet of a pedestrian mall
3. natural environment
They observed Ps recovery by measurig their blood pressure, SCR and muscle tension.
Findings - Muscle tension, BP and HR increase in the first 10 minutes, then the stress decreases. Most resoration happened when individuals watcehd videos of the natural environment
CA of Ulrich et al., (1991) study providing evidence for SRT
This was a bad experiment - unclear whether the stress induction was effective in all conditions (average stress increase line, then three stress decrease lines representing the three film clips)
Urba environmnets are almots always mroe stressful (noise/business) - not a completely fair comparison
Ulrich et al., (1984) effects of nature on durgery recovery
He looked at the recovery for Gall bladder surgery by randomly assigning matched pairs of patients (matched on severity of Gall bladder cases) to a room with either the view of a garden or a brick wall.
They found that those assigned to the green view seemed to recover quicker.
HOWEVER - the effect may not be due to atural elements. Doesnt mena the garden is the cause of the effect (having a garden view may makeyou more distracted)
Park & Mattson (2009)
Interested in whether natural elements can helo the pateinet. Patients were randomly assigned to the same room but the room either had plants, or didnt have plants. Found the same effect - good evidence that the trajectory of recovery is better over a number of days for those with plants in their rooms.
What is Attention Resoration Theory?
Kaplan
There are three different types of attention:
1. direct attention - purposeful, focusing on something specific
2. undirected attention - letting your mind flow, spontaneous attention
3. restored attention
ART = undirected attention helps you t recover from direct attention. When you have directed attention that requires effort, you provide energy for this effort which is exhausting. This causes direct attention to fatigue. Then, with undirected attention, it allows recovery.
Properties of an attention restoring environment
- Being away
- fascination
- Extent
- compatiability
Hartig et al., ART and holiday types
Assessed people who went on wilderness vacations, urban vacations and people who stayed at home. They found that wilderness vacationers had better proof reading. Urban and non-urban vacationers had a decline in performance.
HOWEVER - cross sectional design and individual differences werent considered
Hartig et al., (1991) ART
Carried out a baseline measurement of mood and physiological stress. Then carried an intervention which was a fatiguing task (stroop binary classification). After the fatigue task respondents were randomly assigned to walk in a natural envrionment, urban envrionment or have passive relaxation. They then did a follow up measure of mood and physiological stress and then had Ps complete an attention proof-reading task.
Those who went for a walk in the park had higher levels of happiness. In terms of directed attention, the number of errors detected was higher for those who walked in the park
Perceptual fluency account
Joye (2007)
This is an attempt to integrate SRT and ART. Restoration is dependent on the ease of visual infromation processing (how easy it is to process information when engageing with different types of environmnets
- Perceptual fleuncy = experieced as positive affect and beauty.
- Perceptual fluency is not a theory of restorative environment but a theory of environmnetal aethetics - When the environmnet is more easy to process, that provides a resorative experience (e.g. Fractals)
Why are natural envrionments more restorative than urban?
- complex but coherent
- coherence due to its fractal nature
- fractals are complex but repetitive
- “recursive complexity”: even if you zoom into an element, it remains complex and that allows you to pay attention.
Van der berg (2016): Evidence of the perceptual fleuncy account
Showed Ps pictures of mundane Natural and Urban envrionmnets with different levels of Zoom
- with mundane natural environmnets, even when you zoom in it still remains quite complex compared to urba environments
- This can explain why natural scene types were viewed for longer and are restorative
Green space and health - Engemann et al., (2019):
Study looked at the risk of different psychiatric disorders in different parts on denmark. They linked psychiatric disorders to childhood green space (greenspace at 10th birthday).
They found that those who had access to private or public greenspace had a lower chance of a psychiatric disorder. This still remianed when adjusting for SES.
Green space and health - Poortinga et al., (2021):
Found that having access to a private or public greenspace had an impact on how people felt at different phases of lockdown.
- When Ps did not have access to public greenspace or parks, they had by far the lowest subjective wellbeing.
- They observed an interaction however - such effects were only present during lockdown - when people could move about the effects were much less string
Markevick et al., (2021) model for how greenspace may be linked to health and wellbeing
When youre in green space, there could be three pathways:
- reducing harm: when you find yourself in a natural environment, ususallt you are less exposed to environmnetal stressors (L6)
- restoring capacities : nature restores you from stress and fatigue (L7)
- buiding capacities: increasing social cohesion
Which all effect health and wellbeing
