An affordance-based approach to architectural theory, design, and practice

doi:10.1016/j.destud.2009.01.002

Design Studies

Volume 30, Issue 4, July 2009, Pages 393-414

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2009.01.002 Get rights and content

The idea of affordance, borrowed from perceptual psychology, is applied to the domain of architecture. As to architectural theory, affordances can be used as a conceptual framework to understand the relationship between environments and occupants, especially with respect to form and function. Regarding architectural design, the concept of affordance allows for a common theoretical basis to improve the design process. Concerning architectural practice, affordances can be used as a tool to explore the connection between the intentions of the design with how the artifact is actually used, leading to archived knowledge, and the potential for avoiding common design failures.

Section snippets

History of the idea of affordance

The perceptual psychologist James J. Gibson first put forward the theory of affordances. In other work, the present authors have expanded upon this theory, and identified new application areas (Maier and Fadel, 2001, Maier and Fadel, 2002, Maier and Fadel, 2003, 2005, Maier and Fadel, 2007, Maier and Fadel, in press). Following our introduction of the concept into the engineering design community, other authors have also begun using the concept of affordance within engineering design and

Historical separation of form and function in architecture

As the preceding example illustrates, an understanding of the relationship between form (or more generally, structure) and function (or more generally, user behavior) is essential for a successful design project. An understanding of the separation between form and function in architecture helps to explain the theoretical dilemma that designers face today.

The need to provide appropriate form and function has been recognized since antiquity, e.g., in the writings of Vitruvius (Kruft, 1994).

An affordance-based view of the design process

In an effort to understand the design process in general, we first need to take a step back and address the question of why people design things at all. Once again, Gibson applies the powerful concept of affordance to answer this fundamental question: ‘Why has man changed the shapes and substances of his environment? To change what it affords him’ (Gibson, 1976).

Hence the impetus for any design project can be understood in terms of creating and changing affordances — neither creating artifacts

Summary remarks

In this article we have proposed that the idea of affordance, an established concept from ecological psychology, may serve as a conceptual basis and unifying framework for architectural theory, design, and practice. As many researchers have realized, architectural design, as other fields of design, lacks a rigorous theoretical basis. The concept of affordance can provide that basis, as Gibson originally suggested, because it ties together human occupants (users) and the built environment

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Chris Pagano of the Department of Psychology at Clemson University for his many valuable comments on drafts of the paper. We would also like to thank Peg Tyler, Associate Librarian in the Clemson University Libraries for graciously providing the photographs of the door handles on the Cooper Library. We also thank the anonymous reviewers of earlier drafts of this paper for their helpful comments, especially with respect to the Pruitt-Igoe example and the scale of

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Published by Elsevier Ltd.

An affordance-based approach to architectural theory, design, and practice

Section snippets

History of the idea of affordance

Historical separation of form and function in architecture

An affordance-based view of the design process

Summary remarks

Acknowledgements

AIA national convention and exposition

The environmental assessment technique: a way to measure college environments

Journal of Educational Psychology

The Pruitt-Igoe myth

Journal of Architectural Education

The relationship between function and affordance

The psychology of place

Environmental role and the conceptualizations of housing

Journal of Architectural Research

Programming for design: from theory to practice

Environmental assessment

Architectural programming: information management for design

A theory of semiotics

Human-centered system architecture: a framework for interpreting and applying user needs

Affordances in product architecture: linking technical functions and user requirements

Incorporating affordances into product architecture: methodology and case study

The theory of affordances and the design of the environment

The theory of affordances

Perceptual learning in development: some basic concepts

Ecological Psychology

Innovations in planning for healthcare

The four levels of evidence-based practice

Healthcare Design

Architectural programming and predesign manager

Space is the machine: a configurational theory of architecture

A congruence model of person–environment interaction

The development of a usable lexicon if environmental descriptors

Environment and Behavior

Affordances in interior design: a case study of affordances in interior design of conference room using enhanced function and task interaction

Personal cognitive characteristics in affordance perception: the user activity case study in a building lobby

Buildings and affordances

Architectural programming: creative techniques for design professionals

A history of architectural theory from Vitruvius to the present

Competence, environmental press and adaptation

Ecology and the aging process