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Environmental Psychology Enhancing Our World

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Environmental Psychology Enhancing Our World 1 Environmental Psychology Enhancing our world 2 We Do Not Live in a Vacuum In every moment of our lives, we are in one place or another, interacting with and within that place. Environmental psychology is the science and practice for understanding and optimizing these crucial transactions. 3 Contents Introduction ......................................... 4 Making a Difference ............................. 6 Organizations ...................................... 8 Programs ............................................. 9 Key Environmental Psychologists ....... 11 References ......................................... 15 4 Introduction individuals’ transactions with their buildings serve the needs of their environments, and to use this users?” Answers to questions like knowledge to influence policies that these have already had a significant Environmental psychology is the help promote sustainable behavior impact on environmental behavior, study of how we, as individuals and and create more liveable and green and are described later. as part of groups, interact with our built environments. physical settings—how we A BIT OF HISTORY experience and change the The field is psychological in that it environment, and how our behavior focuses on the thoughts, attitudes, Although EP is a relatively new and experiences are changed by the and behaviors of individuals and small branch of science—only recognized environment. In environmental groups in relation to their as a field since the late 1960s—some psychology, “environment” includes environment. Among other things, of its ideas have been part of both natural and built settings, that environmental psychologists examine psychological research almost since is, natural resources, parks, homes, how our transactions with our work psychology’s inception. Its modern workplaces, public spaces, from the environment are related to our roots can be traced back to the th personal scale to the room, building, satisfaction and productivity, how our middle of the 20 century, with the neighborhood, urban, wilderness, and transactions with our home ideas of researchers such as Egon global scales. environments are connected to our Brunswik (1903-1955) and Kurt Lewin well-being, and how natural (1890-1947). Brunswik argued that Environmental psychology (EP) is a environments promote mental psychologists should focus on an relatively new field—about 50 years health. organism’s environment just as much old now—that has grown rapidly in as the organism itself. Like Brunswik, Environmental psychologists ask such response to the declining health of Lewin viewed the environment as important questions such as, “What the natural environment and the essential for determining behavior. prevents people from behaving in a need to design buildings that better He also emphasized that research reflect the needs of their users. One sustainable manner?” and “What can should be driven by real-world social of its primary goals is to understand we do to encourage environmentally problems, and should strive to solve friendly behavior?” and “How can these problems. His work inspired others such as Roger Barker, Urie Bronfenbrenner, and Robert Sommer, Topics some pioneers of EP. Ecological consequences of human actions Sustainability and climate change The late 1940s and 1950s experienced Psychological aspects of resource management an increase in research on Psychological and behavioral aspects of people and nature psychological processes and their relation with physical surroundings. Place attachment and place identity These earlier studies focused largely Environmental risks and hazards: perception, behavior, and on human interaction with the built management environment, and were categorized Personal and group-based perceptions and evaluations of buildings, as research in “architectural and natural landscapes psychology.” The primary goal of Design and evaluation of workplaces, schools, homes, public many of these studies was to improve buildings, and public spaces human well-being and satisfaction by Cognitive mapping, spatial cognition, and wayfinding designing or altering built Leisure and tourism behavior in relation to their physical settings environments. Stress related to physical settings The 1960s was a time of increased Social space: crowding, privacy, territoriality, personal space societal awareness, when people started becoming more concerned 5 with the health of the natural world. HALLMARKS Journals The Journal of Environmental Psychology and This time period witnessed rapid EP encompasses an ever- Environment and Behavior are international, growth in EP. Researchers began to growing variety of topics. peer-reviewed academic journals with strong study environmental issues, such as Today, the field is impact factors that focus on environmental how human activity negatively characterized by a number of psychology. influences the biophysical key goals and values. environment, and how human- Some Key Publications caused problems (such as noise and Environmental psychologists: Clayton, S. D. (Ed.) (2012). The Oxford handbook of environmental and pollution) affect human health and • Seek to improve our well-being. Topics such as these soon conservation psychology. New York: stewardship of natural Oxford University Press. became an essential part of what resources and the built Fleury-Bahi, G., Pol, E., & Navarro, O. (Eds.). environmental psychologists did. environment (2017). Handbook of environmental psychology and quality of life research. During the 1960s, the first EP • Study everyday settings Springer International Publishing. conference, journal, and PhD • Recognize that Gifford, R. (2014). Environmental psychology: program were established, as well as individuals actively cope Principles and practice. (5th ed.) the largest environment-behavior with, and shape, Colville WA: Optimal Books. Gifford, R. (2014). Environmental Psychology organization, the Environmental environments—they do Matters. Annual Review of Psychology, Design Research Association (EDRA). not passively respond to 65, 541–579. Today, most large national and environmental forces Steg, L., Van den Berg, A. E., & de Groot , J. I. international psychology • Work in conjunction with M. (Eds.) (2012). Environmental organizations have a section or other disciplines psychology: An introduction. New division devoted to EP. York: Wiley. 6 Making a Difference Environmental psychologists help to improve the world in a variety of ways. Sometimes this impact is dramatic. Environmental psychologists have helped to influence the shape of cities, reduce crime, and even save lives. Other times, they influence the world in more subtle ways, such as by making hospitals more navigable, or making national parks more pleasant. Next, we celebrate a few of the ways that EP changes the world for the better. PROMOTING SUSTAINABILITY One of the most important challenges that EP is helping to overcome is to apply psychological knowledge to help preserve the natural environment. Many threats to environmental sustainability are interventions which emphasize the ENVIRONMENTAL IDENTITY caused by human behavior, and so personal benefits of caring for the AND NATURE targeting human behavior is environment, such as lower electricity How individuals think about paramount for protecting nature and bills. themselves can be an important natural resources. To add to the challenge, many predictor of pro-environmental Among other activities, individuals rebound from their pro- behaviors. Those who identify as pro- environmental psychologists identify environmental behaviors. For environmental tend to engage in behaviors that can and should be example, people who reduce energy more pro-environmental behaviors changed to improve environmental consumption in one area tend to (Whitmarsh & O’Neill, 2010). quality, determine which factors compensate by increasing Environmental psychologists use this affect these behaviors, and develop consumption in another (Otto, Kaiser, knowledge to help influence pro- and evaluate interventions to change & Arnold, 2014). Environmental environmental actions, such as using them. psychologists seek not only to alter marketing strategies that encourage behavior, but to ensure this altered greener identity. Most people have some concern for behavior leads to real and lasting the environment, and this concern Emotional connection to the natural results. stems in part from egoistic, altruistic, world is an important predictor of and biospheric environmental values The above are just a few well-being and ecological behavior. (e.g., Schultz, 2001). Knowing what developments in this area. See Steg By helping people develop bonds individuals value helps environmental and Vlek (2009) for an in-depth with nature, environmental psychologists develop intervention review on encouraging pro- psychologists promote sustainable policies—if a person or group’s environmental behavior. behavior and overall well-being. primary concern is egoistic, for example, they can focus on 7 RESTORATIVE influence the perceived safety and burning hotel (Kobes et al., 2009) or a ENVIRONMENTS pleasantness of an environment, and smoky railway tunnel (Cosma, Another key point of interest in EP is can lead to people being less Ronchi, & Nilsson, 2016). Wayfinding the effects of urban and natural protective of these places. Because of research has also helped to develop settings on people. A growing this, and because place attachment is head-mounted displays that can aid number
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