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The Psychology of Place. [ 1977] - Canter, David

Introduction
Human beings are flexible creatures who originated as a nomadic species. Each day was a new
experience, because the Life was a wholesome journey from place to place. So place is indeed a
basic portion of a mans prevalence in the world and it depicts the strong fusion between places
& human life.
Therefore, as a study of an Urban design, we should know how to create & preserve the places
with understanding the distinctive & essential features of places. The book The Psychology of
place is about how explore places as a phenomenon of the physical environment of the lived
world, through our everyday experiences. The author, David Canter is a human geographer who
explores the place as it plays an integral role in Human experience. He has been exploring this
topic for several years and he concludes that Phenomenology is the interpretive study of human
experience.
The perceived

aim is to examine and to clarify human situations, events, meanings, and

experiences as they are known in everyday life with the various ways in which places and with
the unique & vital components of The Psychology of place as they are expressed in the physical
environment.. He found it much easier to elaborate and find a number of degrees of complexity
in the types of sequential map produced than in the type of spatial can be seen to be measuring
different aspects of these neighbourhoods.
The fourth chapter of the book deals with an overview of the place & cognitive cartography. In
here David emphasizes, one option to clarify the place by suspending whether a place is a
property of our cognitive system. It is argued that place arises at all levels of identity my
place, your place, our place, home, street, community, country. Etc. & these all
places are interconnected and overlapped with one another.
A strategy that he used to explore The cognitive cartography is described under different
emerge in the same place, same person but different stages of experiences.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE & LIFE BETWEEN BUILDINGS / REVIEW /URBAN SYNTHESIS

Module code- AU 6050

To be human is to live in a world that is filled with significant places: To be human is to have &
to know your Place. [Martin Heidegger, 1958, p.19]
The study of the human relationship to place is first cross-cut by distinctions between built
versus natural places, explanatory versus normative stances, and humanistic versus scientific
approaches. Several typographies are then provided as ways to organize some of the
psychological research related to place. Place perception and cognition provide insights into
mental and collective representations of place.
Contributions from the psychology of place teach us that place attachment, place identity
and place familiarity are all necessary for healthy living. Affective or emotional constructs,
such as place attachment and dependence, offer ways to consider the strong bonds people form
with places, which can be significant factors in land management. Place identity research
describes how a person may have a sense of belonging in a place, and how this may vary with
background variations. Also how the mobility increases the sense of place. Being inside is
knowing where you are because, From the outside you just see, but from the inside you
experience the place. The character of a place changes with the time. Therefore time generates
different qualities of the place and it is a part of human experience of a place. When individuals
are uprooted from their places, they experience grief and resource loss and they face major tasks
of relocation. These stressors exacerbate the negative impact on Self fulfilling prophecies.
In my views, I am always looking for answers to the typical questions of life. Why are we here?
Is there space for place? What are our places communicating with us and others? And what are
we communicating to our places? Do places can located in anywhere? Could it be changed
according to the personal limitations ? Does people are always open to experience the change of
the location? What are the ways of development of a sense of place is varied for both children
and adults? Is that identity of place means individuality & destination?
Various interpretations can be given through literal and cultural views for the psychology of
place. But the problem is whether there is any feasibility of integrating the findings from the
psychology of place in current practice or not.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE & LIFE BETWEEN BUILDINGS / REVIEW /URBAN SYNTHESIS

Module code- AU 6050

Life Between Buildings. [2006] - Gehl, Jan

This book is about the importance of designing an urban public space with the fundamental
desires of people as guiding principles. The book describes essential elements that contribute to
peoples enjoyment of spaces in the public realm. These elements remain remarkably constant
even as architectural styles go in and out of fashion and the character of life between buildings
changes. Compared to urban life a century ago when necessity forced residents to use the public
spaces to enable a citys residents to meet, their children to run free and its visionaries to be able
to sit on a park bench and day dream. Dr Gehl, whose concepts of focusing on the pedestrian
rather than the motorist.
Gehl discusses the need to create invitations for people entering the public realm and as
important, to linger there. If we want multi-user spaces, spaces must first be multi-use. Gehl
argues that planning approaches that try to separate different functions - residential, commercial,
recreational, etc. - into different spaces breeds monotony and results in the desertification of
public space. He also argues for taking a human-centred design approach that is in sync with
how people perceive and interact with the world - for instance, streetscapes that that nestle
comfortably within, rather than extend far beyond, our field of vision; routes and paths that we
can comfortably navigate on foot; spaces that allow people to transition gradually from private to
public spaces, etc.
He expressed three modest concepts yet fairly broad requirement of public spaces. Those areas
categorized as desirable conditions for the necessary outdoor activities, desirable conditions for
the optional recreational activities and desirable conditions for the social activities. Social
activities vary, depending on the context in which they occur.
What I loved about the book was its ability to break down and explain what most of us might
instinctively sense, but still find difficult to articulate. But Im still in curious, why some places
are inherently attractive to people, drawing people to walk and linger in the space whereas others
do not.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE & LIFE BETWEEN BUILDINGS / REVIEW /URBAN SYNTHESIS

Module code- AU 6050

Conclusion
Reviewing through these chapters , most definitely these books that all students of architecture
must have a look through, as it takes one through not just the exploration of place making theory
of architecture but also adds a new thinking for the student in designing according to the human
experiences. Because it is a huge challenge to create places according to the various human
experiences. Though it is difficult, if it could do it will be more sustainable & green , because
people will always need place because having a place & identifying with place are integral to
what & who we are as human beings.

Relationship to place is a fundamental feature of human existence. This relationship, in broadest

terms, is as various and extensive as are human interactions with their surroundings. But while
some of these interactions can be described in strictly objective terms, such as the spatial
temporal flows of matter and energy studied in resource management, the term place denotes
humans subjective experiences and meanings of the locations they inhabit. Because of this,
approaches to the study of place may draw on very wide vocabularies and concepts of human
subjectivity.
Place may be influenced by human perception, cognition, affective propensities, self-concept,
social dynamics, economies, cultures, and histories. Further, place may be filtered through
various human values systems, ranging from materialistic and utilitarian to spiritual.

I conclude in exploring places and its psychology , entire spectrum of activities in a city and its
cognate concepts, as kaleidoscopic. However reviewing through this, it is difficult to realize or
criticize the definite solution what really supporting for creating the Places. Because those
concepts seems more holistic and Quickly changing from one thing to another.

Reference:
David.Canter, The Psychology of Place, Architectural Press, [1977.]
Ghel. Jan, Life Between Buildings, Danish Architectural Press, [2006]

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE & LIFE BETWEEN BUILDINGS / REVIEW /URBAN SYNTHESIS

Module code- AU 6050

The Psychology of place & Life Between Buildings - Review

F.R.Arooz
Urban Synthesis
Master programme in Urban Design
Module Code : AE 6050
Department of Architecture
University of Moratuwa.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PLACE & LIFE BETWEEN BUILDINGS / REVIEW /URBAN SYNTHESIS

Module code- AU 6050