3 arch sy 2010 models of man

8/8/2019 3 Arch sy 2010 Models of man

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Models of Man


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Models of Man

Mechanistic

Perceptual-Cognitive

Behavioural Ecological, Social systems


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Mechanistic Model

Popular in the 1950s and 1960s

Man- machine systems approach

Fit the machine to the man

Roots: Early industrial psychology studies of time

and motion, energy expenditure, etc.

In modern times: layout analyses, traffic flow

systems, lighting, colour, heating analyses ofenvironment


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Mechanistic Model

Man viewed as a performing, task-oriented

organism

Goal to ensure that mans performance related

skills are maximised

Environments are designed for man in a static

sense with few options to alter environments or to

function in them in a flexible fashion Man is merely another system component with

limited degrees of operational freedom


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Perceptual-Cognitive Model

View of man as a variety of internal

processes

P

erceptual reactions to the environment(how he senses, perceives, and organsises

environmental stimuli)

Motivational and emotional states

associated with environmental stimuli(stress, negative and positive affect)

Cognitive responses to the environment

(subjective estimates of the richness, complexity,

meaning and evaluation of the environment)


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Perceptual-Cognitive Model

More concerned with subjective psychological

processes in relation to the environment than

with overt behavioural responses

Goal: to uncover how man sees, perceives, feels

and reacts to aspects of his environment

subjective perceptions of an environment

irrespective of objective characteristics

Techniques: semantic differential scales,

cognitive maps


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Behavioural Model

Emphasises study of overt behaviour rather than

internal, subjective states

What a man does is stressed over how he feels

or perceives

Involves detailed observations made of peoples

movements and activities as they function in

various environments


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Behavioural Model

Research in laboratory settings Dealing with of which deals with overt behavioural

events

Field experiments with behavioural measurements How people overtly interact

Protect spaces

Occupy chair locations

Approach others at varying distances as functions ofmanipulated variables such as nature and degree ofintrusion, status, etc


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Ecological, Social systems Model

Central theme: Human interpersonal behaviour

is part of a complex ecosystem

1. Environment and behaviour are closely

intertwined. Behaviour cannot be wholly understoodindependent of its intrinsic relationship to the physical

environment

2. There is mutual and dual impact between man

and his environment. Man becomes anenvironmental change agent not merely a recipient ofenvironmental influences i.e. An active coping use of the

environment by people and not merely reactive responses

to environmental stimuli


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Ecological, Social systems Model

3. Dynamic, changing quality of man-environment

relations. Not static, immutably fixed or intransigentrelationships. Territories shift functions alter

4. Man-environment relations occur at several levels ofbehavioural functioning and as a coherent system

All the previous models emphasize different facets ofhuman functioning. This model proposes many levelsoccur simultaneously and must be seen as a coherent

set.a. Verbal content and paraverbal behaviour

b. Nonverbal behaviour

c. Environmentally oriented behaviour


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Summary

Mechanistic model: with man viewed primarilyas a part of a complex man machine, andemphasis placed on performance-relative

behaviours Perceptual-cognitive-motivational model: Studies

of cognitive maps and subjective reactions toenvironmental stimuli

Behavioural model: Emphasis on overtbehaviour rather than internal psychologicalprocesses


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Summary

Ecological, social systems model:Conceives of man- environment events asinvolving

Several behavioural levels eg. Subjective internalprocesses, Overt verbal, nonverbal andenvironmental behaviours which

Function as a coherent system of interrelated,substitutable and complementary behaviours and

Where there is a mutual relationship betweenenvironment and behaviour, each influencing andshaping the other

In a dynamic time-linked sense


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Major Themes

Attention

Perception and cognitive maps

Preferred environments Environmental stress and coping

Participation

Conservation


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Attention

Understanding human behaviour starts withunderstanding how people notice theenvironment

This includes at least two kinds of stimuli:those that involuntarily command humannotice, as well as those places, things orideas to which humans must direct theirawareness

Restoring and enhancing peoples capacity tovoluntarily direct their attention is a majorfactor in maintaining human effectiveness


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Perception and cognitive

maps How people image the natural and built environment Information is stored in the brain as spatial networks

called cognitive maps

These structures link ones recall of experienceswith perception of present events, ideas andemotions

It is through these neural networks that humansknow and think about the environment, plan andcarry out their plans.

What humans know about an environment is more than external reality in that they perceive with prior

knowledge and expectations, and

less than external reality in that they record only a portion ofthe entire visual frame yet recall it as complete andcontinuous


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Preferred environments People tend to seek out places where they feel competent

and confident, places where they can make sense of the

environment while also being engaged with it

It involves coherence (a sense that things in the environment gel

together) and legibility (the inference that one can explore anenvironment without becoming lost) as contributors to

environmental comprehension

Being involved and wanting to explore an environment

requires that it have complexity (containing enough variety to

make it worth learning about) and mystery (the prospect of gainingmore information about an environment)

Preserving, restoring and creating a preferred environment

is thought to increase sense of well being and behavioral

effectiveness in humans.


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Environmental stress and

coping Along with the common environmental stressors(e.g., noise, climatic extremes) some define

stress as the failure of preference, including in

the definition such cognitive stressors asprolonged uncertainty, lack of predictability and

stimulus overload

Research has identified numerous behavioral

and cognitive outcomes including physical

illness, diminished altruism, helplessness and

attentional fatigue.


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Environmental stress and

coping Coping with stress involves a number of options Humans can change their physical or social settings to

create more supportive environments (e.g., smaller

scaled settings, territories) where they can manage theflow of information or stress inducing stimuli

People can also endure the stressful period, incurring

mental costs that they deal with later, in restorative

settings (e.g., natural areas, privacy, solitude)

They can also seek to interpret or make sense of a

situation as a way to defuse its stressful effects, often

sharing these interpretations as a part of their culture


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Participation

Enhancing citizen involvement in environmental

design, management and restoration efforts

Concerned not only with promoting citizen

comprehension of environmental issues but withinsuring their early and genuine participation in

the design, modification and management of

environments


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Conservation behavior

Environmental Psychology plays a major role in

bringing psychological knowledge to bear upon

the issue of developing an ecologically

sustainable society It explores environmental attitudes, perceptions

and values as well as devise intervention

techniques for promoting environmentally

appropriate behavior


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Orientations

Problem Oriented

Systems Oriented

Interdisciplinary Oriented Space-Over-Time Oriented


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Orientations

Problem Oriented: Addressesenvironmental problems such as density and

crowding, noise pollution, sub-standard

living, and urban decay

Systems Oriented: Applied to theindividual level of analysis and higher order

levels of analysis needed by difficultenvironmental problems, surrounding groups

and organizations


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Orientations

Interdisciplinary Oriented: Relies oninteraction with other disciplines. There are

three necessary fields that environmental

psychology must collaborate with

Behavioural sciences (sociology, political science,

anthropology, economics, etc.)

Interspecialisation (other psychologies such as

developmental, social, cognitive, etc.)

Design professions (architecture, interior design,

landscape architecture, etc.)


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Orientations

Space-Over-Time Oriented: Highlights the importance of the past

Examining problems with the past in mind creates a

better understanding of how past forces, such as

social, political, and economic forces, may be ofrelevance to present and future problems

Also physical settings change over time; they change

with respect to physical properties and they change

because individuals using the space change over time Looking at these spaces over time will help monitor the

changes and possibly predict future problems.

3 arch sy 2010 models of man

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