Think of a place you often visit that instantly makes you feel happy or at ease the second you enter it. Now think of a space that makes you feel uncomfortable or stressed. What are the physical differences between those two spaces? Is it the lighting, color scheme, or materials used? On average, we spend 90% of our day in indoor spaces, yet very little research focuses on the impact that our surroundings have on our emotional well-being. We believe that we are separate from our environments, but cognitively, our bodies and surroundings are one. This should raise the question: how do the spaces we occupy for long hours, such as houses, offices, schools, or hospitals, affect our health?

As you enter any place, your body starts reacting to the stimuli around you. This information can be backed up by studies in the emerging field of neuroarchitecture: an interdisciplinary domain that explores how the built environment affects human brain function, behavior, cognition, and psychology. On average, your body collects 11 million bits of sensory information but only registers 50 of them consciously. All these sensory bits (whether conscious or subconscious) affect you in one way or another, which points to the fact that there is no such thing as a neutral space: your body is having a literal reaction to the space, either positively or negatively, and the outcomes can be manifested in your emotional well-being. 

Since places have such a great impact on us, does this mean we can construct “health”? The short answer is: yes. It is important to remember that we are designing for people, not just for the sake of creating aesthetic buildings. Think of spaces as a non-invasive therapeutic treatment. They should instill within you a sense of hope, authenticity, and generosity. Designing spaces that reinforce the fact that we are alive can have a significantly positive impact on our well-being. This can be achieved by incorporating natural elements within the design, such as plants, materials, and light. Therefore, to a great extent, neuroarchitecture validates what most of us have intuitively felt: architecture plays a great role in our lives and is a crucial determinant of how we live and thrive. 

"Since humans spend significantly more time indoors than outdoors, it is the responsibility of architects to create spaces that positively influence people’s emotional well-being. Neuroarchitecture allows us to understand the effects certain design decisions have on the body and how to construct spaces that promote health." - Nour Eltabakh, Graduate Architect at U+A