USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY AND VIRTUAL REALITY FOR A USER-CENTERED DESIGN APPROACH

This paper presents a method to integrate qualitative requirements in the design process, starting from environmental psychology, and including the use of virtual reality systems. The current approach to the design process is mainly based on compliance with building codes or regulations and developed through consolidated practices or previous expertise. The goal of this research is the creation of a work method, based on scientific evidence, that puts the user at the center of the process. Focused on school buildings and through a critical review, four main themes are defined as guidelines for the designer: A) perception of the building; b) physical characteristics; c) design of the classroom space and furniture; d) school green spaces and outdoor activities. These represent the starting point, potentially improved through the definition of new fields of research; for this purpose, it is possible evaluate the use of VR technologies as a potential support tool. The paper also proposes an experimental model to investigate, by VR technologies, the effects related to exposure to the external environment from the internal one, by studying two variables: The type of connection (visual vs. physical) and the type of environment (natural vs. anthropic) in relation to student’s stress and attention levels. This approach provides a new vision of the design phase where the focus is brought to the user through the analysis of scientific evidence, together with the use of new technologies.