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Translational Science Model for Designing of Outdoor Environments for Stress Relief in an Educational Institute

Abstract

Throughout history outdoor landscapes have been proven to be effective at stress relief . Unfortunately in the 20th century ,with the advent of industrialization and technology, the connection between man and the natural environment has come under increasing strain.But now architects and other educational communities are again trying to restore this balance by inducing nature into the contemporary built environments through landscape design.In a developing country like India, the design of outdoor environments and elements is primarily done on the basic intuitive and design skills of architects or designers. They are seldom aware of the impact of various environmental and physical factors on the physiology and neurology of the users ,the primary consideration being that the space should be looking aesthetically appealing to the client, also there is very little knowledge on the quality of these factors that may provide the most beneficial effect in context of stress relief. Latest innovations and research in the fields of neuroscience, medicine and other allied fields has led to a broader level of understanding about the characteristic features of various environmental and physical factors ,and their implications on human psychology and immunology ,also it can help to evolve a set of quantitative and qualitative attributes for these factors that can help design environments that are convergent to stress relief .This paper aims to discuss and develop a translational model that can converge the use of existing subjective theories based on evidences from clinical and behavioral sciences and the neurological implications of the environmental and physical factors for designing an outdoor environment for stress relief .The proposed model would help to analyze and test existing design features and elements in an outdoor environment in context of stress relief .It can help to access weather the characteristic features of these factors are qualitatively and quantitatively suitable for stress relief . To understand the suitability of these design features and factors in context of a space ,a survey is conducted with the students of architecture from School of Planning and Architecture ,Bhopal to access their stress levels and their preference of environmental and physical factors .This evidence plays an explicit role in determining the suitability of the design features and elements for the stress relieving spaces in an institute.

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