Topic 11: Designing More Fitting Environments

1. Topic 11:Designing More Fitting Environments

2. What is social design? • Social design research involves studying how settings can best serve human desires and requirements. • Social Design versus Formal design

3. Social Design vs Formal Design • Formal design favors an approach that may be described as:- • large scale, • corporate, • high cost, • exclusive, • authoritarian, • tending to high-tech solutions, and concerned with….. • style, • ornament, • the paying client, • and a national or international focus.

4. Social Design vs Formal Design • Tendency of a Social Design: • small scale, • human oriented, • low cost, • inclusive, • democratic, • tending to appropriate technology, • concerned with • meaning and context, • the occupant as well as the paying client, • a local focus

5. Architecture as Art • Environments should, of course, be both beautiful and functional for their occupants

6. The principal players in building include • the client (who puts up the money) • the designer (architect, planner) • the engineer (on larger projects) • the everyday building user, occupant, or visitor

7. Social design research has become necessary in industrial and postindustrial societies. • Its Roles are: • To establish and to facilitate communication among the principal players in the design process. • To remind everyone involved that the everyday building user is one of the principal players

8. Social Research in the Design Process • The Goals • Social design researchers & practitioners goals are to: • Create physical settings that match the needs and activities of their occupants (habitability, congruence, or goodness of fit • Satisfy the building users • Change behavior • Enhance the occupant’s personal control • Facilitate social support • Employ imageability

9. Stages in the Design Process • Programming (Analysis) • Design (Synthesis) • Construction (Realization) • Use (Reality Testing) • Evaluation (Review): Post occupancy Evaluation–Dimensions

10. Stages in the Design Process 1. Programming (Analysis) • Understand users by analyzing the users’ needs This analysis should involve multiple methods such as surveys and interviews of occupants

11. Stages in the Design Process 2. Design (Synthesis) • Formulating Design Guidelines  six workplace design guidelines • Shelter and security • Social contact • Task instrumentality • Symbolic identification • Growth • Pleasure • Guidelines must be transformed into building plans

12. Stages in the Design Process 3. Construction (Realization) • Building the project and modifying plans under changing constrains • The architectural plans are turned into wood, concrete, glass and steel • Designers oversees construction  ensure plans are faithfully executed

13. Stages in the Design Process 4. Use (Reality Testing) • Moving in and adapting the environment • Building are finally occupied

14. Stages in the Design Process 5. Evaluation (Review): Post occupancy Evaluation–Dimensions • Monitoring the final product in terms of objectives and use  ideally to be translated into future design criteria. • Post occupancy evaluations vary along four dimensions: • Size • Generality • Breadth of focus • Application timing