Lecture Three the psychology of space

Tim Stock Design Research Methods School of Design Strategies Parsons the New School for Design Fall 2009

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

humans desire space...

how a culture values space reects identity and beliefs. our concepts of what is livable is shaped by our culture.

IMAGE: Flickr /ubac

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

behavior shapes the meaning...

how we plan space is less about building than it is reshaping the behavior that the space affords.
IMAGE: Flickr /GarySmith70

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

meaning evolves from our sense of self...

I am part of a bigger story.

My needs are most important.

our sense of space is tied to our sense of self...

IMAGE: Flickr /edenpictures

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

perspectives of ownership...
I belong to the land.

how we plan begins with our sense of our position to the spaces we inhabit.
IMAGE: Barry Skipsey

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

what kind of cities do we aspire to?

more parks

places to hang out

cool shops locally grown foods

our aspirations are shaped by the limits of our existing vocabulary.

IMAGE: Flickr /caruba

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

needs drive what is important...

the question is who we are listening to...

if you plan a city around cars you get more cars.

IMAGE: Flickr /Kevin Coles

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

parking lots

public parks

dont live here

convenience

NEEDS

live here
oasis

features work based on our perspective on needs.

IMAGE: Flickr /dandeluca IMAGE: Flickr /twinxamot

DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

People choose spaces based on...

gut emotional
belonging

badge delity relevance pecking order

reinforcement

rational
Constituents Needs Features
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functionality

safe clean

the process of effective space planning comes from feeding the most benecial features to the right people.
IMAGE: Flickr /GarySmith70

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

rational emotional gut

public space

used for public speaking

social space

for interactions among acquaintances

intimate space personal space

for embracing, touching or whispering for interactions among good friends or family members

how we interact with the spaces around us is a vocabulary cultivated from birth.

proxemics is tied to our sense of self...

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

War of the Worlds (2005)

Youre safe in your space

rational
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The concept of personal space is an invisible and undened three-dimensional area surrounding an individual which, when invaded, causes sensations of nervousness, discomfort and/or embarrassment.

space offers safety..... our sense of what creates uneasiness varies.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

When is this over?

public transportation tests the struggle between our rational and emotional mind.
spatial empathy hinges on how much activities such as this are woven into the daily fabric.

rational
surrender of personal space tests our concept of necessity...
IMAGE: Flickr /gustty

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

public bathrooms force us to reect on what standards of cleanliness and privacy we expect.

we rewire our body mechanics to mitigate the proximity to the stuff we fear.

Is it safe in there? Can I touch that?

rational
surrender of personal space tests our concept of necessity...
IMAGE: Flickr /doortoriver

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

...our sense of self in relation to society. ...our sense of aspiration and ideology.
own rented subsidized

emotional
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white picket fence as symbol of the boundaries of ownership and suburban middle-class status.

home is at the core of our emotional identity.

IMAGE: Flickr /thomas.merton

PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

The Polite British Queue

The Russian Bread Line

The Line Jumper

emotional
queues reinforce our sense of identity in relation to society.
IMAGE: Flickr /SophieMuc

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

respect the line
monochronic cultures value orderliness and sense a focus on one task at a time.

screw the line

polychronic cultures like to do multiple things at the same time.

emotional
queues reveal the underlying cultural context.
IMAGE: Flickr /mdezemery

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

When McDonalds rst opened in Hong Kong in 1975, customers crowded around the cash registers, shouting orders and waving money over the heads of people in front of them. McDonalds responded by introducing queue monitorsyoung women who channeled customers into orderly lines. Queuing subsequently became a hallmark of Hong Kongs cosmopolitan, middle-class culture.

emotional
queues can work as critical catalysts in reshaping cultural norms.
IMAGE: Flickr /nanceguy

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

the economics of space.

Im more important.....I go rst

emotional
queues can also reinforce behavior that agitates a sense of fairness.
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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

emotional
This behavior spills over into other bigger issues where our identity in relationship to society is tested.

IMAGE: Print Advertisement

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

we try to impose our own identity on borrowed spaces to regain power we see being taken from us.
I am not a number

personal items that connect us to home I am on my way to the corner ofce

emotional
emotional ownership trickles over into borrowed spaces.
IMAGE: Flickr /Stewf

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

The goal of any hotel room is to make you feel as if you are the rst person to use it.

emotional
spaces sometimes aspire to the illusion of personal space.
IMAGE: Flickr /uberzombie

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

First Class

Business

Coach

how brands manage our sense of space reects on their relevance and resonance.

emotional
the economics of proximity plays out in plain view.
IMAGE: Flickr /WexDub

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

Premium Economy was rst introduced in 1992. It is a service aimed at the cost conscious business traveller who, for budgetary reasons, travels economy but still requires extra space in which to work or relax.

emotional
emotional ownership as brand strategy.
IMAGE: Flickr /WexDub

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

gut
spaces can transcend the empirical to more abstract concepts of delity and local pride.
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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

Brooklyn has meaning beyond the bricks and cement.

gut
the identity of location is shaped by the stories that make them meaningful.
IMAGE: Spike Lee as Mars Blackmon

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

gut

the draw of Platos Cave remains...even in the era of home entertainment.

shared spaces like cinemas allow us to feel connected to communal stories that reinforce our belonging.
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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

Besides a mate and a job, we need a dependable place of refuge where, for a few minutes a day, we can escape the demands of family and bosses.
Ray Oldenburg author of The Great Good Place

gut
third place offers an escape and builds community narrative.
IMAGE: Jack Mazzola, Jacks Stir Brew

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

play

work

gut
spaces that challenge convention propel the cultural narrative.
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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

less hit and run and more of a hub in the human network.

gut
retail that seeks to transcend our expectation of shopping space.
IMAGE: Flickr /Matt Garland

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

The Designer

The Consumer

How well we shape features to the needs and aspirations of the space decides the continuity and evolution of use.

CONTROL DISCOVERY
CONSTITUENTS NEEDS/ASPIRATIONS FEATURES

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

grafti culture evolves as expression that tests ownership and use of public spaces.

who owns the discourse?

reclaiming spaces as designer/consumer conversation.

IMAGE: Flickr /timstock

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

New York Talk Exchange illustrates the global exchange of information in real time by visualizing volumes of long distance telephone and IP (Internet Protocol) data owing between New York and cities around the world.

west

east

urban

suburban

global

local

technology transforms meaning.

IMAGE: Flickr /dorywithserifs

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

layers of narrative open up opportunities for interaction

IMAGE: YellowArrow.net

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

555 KUBIK - URBANSCREEN.COM

spaces can be canvases for discovery and transformation.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

where things happen is less important than how things happen.

technology transforms use and context.

IMAGE: Flickr /dorywithserifs

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

CASE
Bicycle Lanes
thanks for the cool new green sidewalk

big design changes such as bike lanes require broader realignment of community culture.

the space doesnt dene the use...the behavior does.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

even for cyclists the vocabulary of space varies.

COMMUTERS ATHLETES

...my safe portal ...my training track ...for suckers

MESSENGERS

meaning varies because needs vary.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

my own space for moving stuff...

cyclist

cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

great for ambulance lunch breaks

hope we dont get hit..at least the ambulance is nearby

cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

a new junk lane...

cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

my own space for deliveries

cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.

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PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE

Presentation Format Poster Board (organized) Photographs pasted Presentation notes sheet cognitive dissonance behavioral observations cultural observations

1. Choose a public space to study. 2. Identify and prole 3 key users of this space. 3. Identify key design features that
meet each proles needs. 4. Identify the ways these groups comply and reinterpret use.

Team Assignment: Observational Field Research

IMAGE: Flickr /Eustaquio Santimano

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PROF. TIM STOCK