Turn the Left Cheek – “Science News”
Ever wondered which way to face when you’re having your photo taken? Research completed by Park, Spence, Ishii, and Togawa can be useful next time you’re posing for a photo! This team explored “the...
When the Red Light doesn’t Necessary mean Stop – “Science News”
Pontes and Williams’ recent research is useful whenever people are trying to encourage or discourage people from gambling, taking risks. The investigators share that “In general, people make more risk averse choices, gambling less...
Why ADHD Children Need Green Space – “Science News”
Research by Thygesen and colleagues indicates that spending a little extra to provide greater access to green spaces for children may be money well spent. The Thygesen-lead team reports that when they reviewed data...
Leaving on a Jet Plane
As we start to be inoculated, worldwide, it does start to seem likely that someday soon we may again find ourselves on airplanes, actually travelling, maybe even for fun. Remember vacation? Airplane Design from...
Importance of Greenery during COVID – Biophilic Design does it Again!
In another of our science-based research short reports we bring you this lovely study. Dzhambov and teammates probed links between the presence of indoor and outdoor greenery and the wellbeing of people during the...
Why to Scent Subtly!
Humans “communicate” extensively via scents, according to research recently published by Hofer, Chen, and Schaller; these findings support subtle scentscaping. In another of our “in the news” articles, here is some really interesting information...
Temperature Matters!
When it’s cold we need more social warmth. Fay and Maner found that “Laboratory studies have linked variability in temperature to the psychology of social affiliation. In colder ambient environments, for example, people report...
Cute Rectangles
Yes, research indicates that some shapes are cuter than others; while this research at first might not appear to be very useful, it can be handy the next time you’re selecting a baby gift,...
Home Design and Lockdown Depression
The bottom line of this research is that we need larger spaces and look out onto greenery, awe also need natural lighting, better acoustics, art, greenery and privacy… Design-depression links have been identified using data...
Clean Air for Boosting your Mind
Mullen and colleagues confirm how important it is to breathe clean air and their work supports efforts to make sure air inside buildings is filtered. The researchers report that “Fine particulate air pollution is harmful to...
Water Magic
Intentionally adding water to a space is a good idea, as long as that water stays where it belongs—rogue water from a broken pipe is a psychologically debilitating stressor. Looking at water that’s gently...
Not the Same Old Oval Office
Most offices, even if they’re used by well-known people are unseen by most of us. Titans of industry and even many public officials spend their “office hours” working in places that only their professional...
Fractal Patterns have remarkable benefits…
Robles and colleagues make it official—natural fractals really are a visual plus! They determined that adults and children as young as 3 respond to these fractal patterns in the same way. The Robles, Taylor,...
Soundscapes and Sensitivity
Tarlao, Steffens, and Guastavino’s work verifies that many factors besides the actual noises themselves influence perceptions of acoustic experiences. The researchers report that “Previous soundscape research has shown a complex relationship between soundscapes, public space...
More Proof that Biological Diversity benefits us
Methorst and colleagues report that they “examine[d] the relationship between species diversity and human well-being at the continental scale, while controlling for other known drivers of well-being. We related socio-economic data from more than...
What’s the most important design element in working from home?
Mental and physical work can take multiple forms. Mental work is doing the book keeping for your business or some other “knowledge-“ type work or maybe even thinking creatively to solve some sort of...
What you wear can influence what you eat…
Wang and colleagues link clothing worn and food selections made, it may be possible to apply their findings more generally, but whether this sort of extension is reasonable will need to be directly investigated. ...
How to prevent mental exhaustion and distraction when Working from home?
Whether you’re doing mental or physical work, the space you are in should come complete with lots of natural light. Natural light is good for our mood and that has benefits for how good...
‘Tis the Season for Cosy
The space in this photograph is a fine place to spend some time. Nothing says “cosy winter afternoon” faster than a fireplace fire. Staring into those flames is, what’s known in the psych biz,...
Bake-Off a Winner!
Are you following The Great British Bake-Off? If you are, that’s great because Bake-Off’s sets are doing all sorts of good things from an environmental psych perspective. The Bake-Off happens in a tent, which...
The Science of Using Scents
Happily, for most of us, most of the time, are noses are doing their job and we can pick up odours in the world around us. Scientific studies consistently link particular smells to particular...
Temperature Tangos
Winter – This is temperature tango time, the months of the year when there are lots and lots of heated debates about where to set the thermostat. Science can end this discussion before it does...
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall…
Seeing oneself in a mirror makes it more likely we’ll follow the rules that our society has set for us, so they’re good options for places such as entry areas where properly stowing boots...
What is Environmental Psychology?
Since the first of our ancestors set up a home and cared about the experiences of people living there, there has been environmental psychology. Whenever people developing or managing spaces have cared about making...
Are you an extravert?
People wearing or near more saturated colours are perceived as being more extraverted and open to experience, than people who aren’t; apparently viewers judging others don’t consider the possibility that a sweater or shirt...
Pantone Colour of the Year 2020 – Classic Blue
In 2020, Classic Blue was named colour of the year by Pantone Color Institute, a leading source of colour expertise, the Pantone Color Institute provides colour insights and solutions and announces a different colour every...
Dealing with Colour Blindness
If you or someone you know has colour blindness you might find that you are having difficulty identifying and differentiating between certain colours. Often the struggle is between red, green and yellow, some confuse...
How children relate to colour
Infants have colour vision, just like adults, using only black and white in spaces for them isn’t desirable. Children are more apt to say that their favorite colour is red than adults, but actually,...
Colour and Gender
[restrict] To settle a continuing dispute in many homes, women do indeed have better colour vision than men (men’s vision is more tuned to moving objects than women’s). So, if you’re trying to decide...
Favourite Colours
Around the world, when people are asked what their favourite colour is they are more likely to say it is blue than any other colour. The colour that people are most likely to say...
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