Fostering Sustainable Behavior Through Design: A Study of the Social, Psychological, and Physical Influences of the Built Environment

The ultimate goal of this research paper was to gain a more acute perspective into the relationship between the physical environment and human behavior, so that architectural design may begin to promote and affect environmentally friendly behavior in its users. The three main fields of psychology that were the focus of this paper were social psychology, environmental psychology, and cognitive psychology, all of which were essential to understanding the unique relationship one has with their built environment. The definitive goal of the sustainability movement, or what I at least think it should be, is the creation of an environmentally friendly society. The widespread use of sustainable architectural design practices has been a great step forward, but if this movement is to be successful, I feel we must focus equally on the relationship between people and their physical environments. Ultimately, the sustainability movement depends less on the architectural environments that we create, and more on the cooperation of the people who occupy those environments