A curative atmosphere? : the effect of interior design on in-patient recovery in psychiatric facilities
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2020
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Abstract
"By bringing knowledge of the human psyche into design practice, the spaces within which we spend time may help to both prevent poor mental health, and also contribute to treating mental illness in a more efficient way than they do today. Hence, understanding mental illness and mental health may prove an important development within design, and design may also prove an invaluable tool in furthering the understanding of mental disorders. Through this thesis, it is sought to describe the atmospheric qualities which evidently play a pivotal role in therapeutic spaces by identifying specific characteristics of a curative atmosphere. These characteristics can inform design strategies which may be employed to design psychiatric hospitals in order to better support the treatments taking place within them. Such characteristics have been identified via a literature review of predominantly psychiatric journals, hence allowing psychology to inform design strategies. These, in turn, can positively impact the practice of psychotherapy by producing engaging therapeutic environments. By categorising the recurring themes in the reviewed literature, a comprehensive list or guide of integral aspects and design features contributing to a curative atmosphere can be compiled, which designers and stakeholders of therapeutic environments should consider in the design process of such spaces."