Building appearance and wellbeing: how architectural design affects public emotion

Research was conducted to understand public's views on how they perceive and emotionally respond to building exteriors. This study's methodology involved three phases: a survey of 2,029 participants; a subset of 21 individuals engaged in week-long, in-depth video diary exercises; plus, a second, follow-up survey of 2,000. The dataset was subjected to rigorous analysis employing a range of statistical tools for quantitative/qualitative analysis including thematic coding/classification, frequency, and sentiment analyses of video diary transcripts. Results suggest buildings' appearance impact people's emotional wellbeing. There is a desire for investment in designing buildings that make people feel good when looking at them. Other findings included criticisms of the construction industry, a preference for older buildings and for more restoration/reuse not demolition. Finally, their views on building appearance were associated with sustainability concerns, an under-researched interaction rendering this a novel study. These insights may offer valuable guidance for future urban planning and design.

Highlights
This study stands as one of the most extensive investigations of building design’s influence on emotions.

The public know that buildings affect their wellbeing: 75.6% of respondents indicated that buildings have at least some impact on their mental health and 70.7% agreed we should invest more in buildings that positively impact how we feel as passers-by.

There is a connection between the appearance of buildings and people’s views of sustainability, and this is an under researched topic warranting future research.