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 1 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
humans desire space...
how a culture values space reflects
identity and beliefs.
our concepts of what is “livable” is
shaped by our culture.
IMAGE: Flickr /ubac
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 2 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
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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
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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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 5 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
what kind of cities do we aspire to?
places to hang out
more parks
cool shops
locally grown foods
our aspirations are shaped by the limits of our existing vocabulary.
IMAGE: Flickr /caruba
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 6 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 7 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
parking lots public parks
don’t live here NEEDS live here
convenience oasis
features work based on our perspective on needs.
IMAGE: Flickr /dandeluca IMAGE: Flickr /twinxamot
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
People choose spaces based on...
gut belonging
badge
fidelity
reinforcement
emotional relevance
pecking order
functionality
rational safe
clean
Constituents the process of effective space
planning comes from feeding
Needs the most beneficial features
to the right people.
Features
IMAGE: Flickr /GarySmith70
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
rational public space used for public speaking
emotional
social space for interactions among
acquaintances
gut
intimate for embracing, touching
space
or whispering
personal space 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...
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 10 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
War of the Worlds (2005)
“You’re safe in your space”
The concept of personal space is an invisible and undefined
three-dimensional area surrounding an individual which, when
rational invaded, causes sensations of nervousness, discomfort and/or
embarrassment.
space offers safety..... our sense of what creates uneasiness varies.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 11 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 12 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
public bathrooms force us to reflect on what
standards of cleanliness and privacy we expect.
we rewire our body mechanics to “Is it safe in there?”
mitigate the proximity to the stuff we fear.
“Can I touch that?”
rational
surrender of personal space tests our concept of necessity...
IMAGE: Flickr /doortoriver
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
...our sense of self in relation to society.
...our sense of aspiration and ideology.
own rented subsidized
white picket fence as symbol of the
emotional boundaries of ownership and suburban
middle-class status.
home is at the core of our emotional identity.
IMAGE: Flickr /thomas.merton
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 14 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
The Russian Bread Line
The Polite British Queue
The Line Jumper
emotional
queues reinforce our sense of identity in relation to society.
IMAGE: Flickr /SophieMuc
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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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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
When McDonald’s first 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. McDonald’s
responded by introducing queue monitors—young women who channeled customers into orderly
lines. Queuing subsequently became a hallmark of Hong Kong’s cosmopolitan,
middle-class culture.
emotional
queues can work as critical catalysts in reshaping cultural norms.
IMAGE: Flickr /financeguy
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
the economics of space.
“I’m more important.....I go first”
emotional
queues can also reinforce behavior that agitates a sense of fairness.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 18 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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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
we try to impose our own identity on
borrowed spaces to regain power we see “I am not a number”
being taken from us.
personal items that
connect us to home
“I am on my way to the
corner office”
emotional
emotional ownership trickles over into borrowed spaces.
IMAGE: Flickr /Stewf
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 20 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
The goal of any hotel room is to
make you feel as if you are the first
person to use it.
emotional
spaces sometimes aspire to the illusion of personal space.
IMAGE: Flickr /uberzombie
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 21 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
First how brands manage our sense of space
Class Business Coach reflects on their relevance and resonance.
emotional
the economics of proximity plays out in plain view.
IMAGE: Flickr /WexDub
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
Premium Economy was first 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 23 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
gut
spaces can transcend the empirical to more abstract concepts
of fidelity and local pride.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 24 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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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
the draw of Plato’s Cave remains...even
gut in the era of home entertainment.
shared spaces like cinemas allow us to feel connected to communal
stories that reinforce our belonging.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 26 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, Jack’s Stir Brew
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 27 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
play work
gut
spaces that challenge convention propel the cultural narrative.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 28 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 29 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 30 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
graffiti 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 31 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 flowing between New
York and cities around the world.
west east
urban suburban
global local
technology transforms meaning.
IMAGE: Flickr /dorywithserifs
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 32 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
layers of narrative open up opportunities for interaction
IMAGE: YellowArrow.net
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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
555 KUBIK - URBANSCREEN.COM
spaces can be canvases for discovery and transformation.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 34 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
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 35 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 doesn’t define the use...the behavior does.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 36 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
even for cyclists the
vocabulary of space varies.
COMMUTERS “...my safe portal”
ATHLETES “...my training track”
MESSENGERS “...for suckers”
meaning varies because needs vary.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 37 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
my own space for moving stuff...
cyclist
cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 38 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
great for ambulance lunch breaks
“hope we don’t get hit..at least
the ambulance is nearby”
cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 39 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
a new junk lane...
cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 40 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
my own space for deliveries
cognitive dissonance bubbles up from a lack of cultural integration.
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 41 PROF. TIM STOCK

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SPACE
Presentation Format
Poster Board (organized) cognitive dissonance
Photographs pasted
Presentation notes sheet
behavioral observations
cultural observations
1. Choose a public space to study.
2. Identify and profile 3 key users of this space.
3. Identify key design features that
meet each profile’s needs.
4. Identify the ways these groups
comply and reinterpret use.
Team Assignment: Observational Field Research
IMAGE: Flickr /Eustaquio Santimano
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODS 42 PROF. TIM STOCK