ÇUBUKÇU, Ebru Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi - Mimarlık Fakültesi - Şehir ve Bölge Planlama Bölümü, Türkiye , EKŞİOGLU CETİNTAHRA, Gözde Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi - Mimarlık Fakültesi - Şehir ve Bölge Planlama Bölümü, Turkey , SARICA, Ceyda Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi - Mimarlık Fakültesi - Şehir ve Bölge Planlama Bölümü, Turkey

Could we prevent visual pollution in cities? An empirical study on the quantity and colors of commercial signs

28087

The excessive number of commercial signs causes visual pollution on streets. Shop owners’ increased interest in displaying registered and colorful commercial signs adds to this visual pollution. This study aims to answer two questions: (1) Is sign recognition affected by the number of signs on a street?, and (2) Do people recognize signs and brands without the original registered colors, as well as the ones with registered colors? Four virtual environments, which vary in the amount and color of signs, were developed to simulate a commercial strip. Sixty students participated in the study. Participants were tested in one of these virtual environments. First, they were asked to experience the environment for a minute. Then, they were asked to report the signs they remembered and to report how well they remember each brand. Participants answered these questions with and without visual clues. Results showed that (1) how well the brands on the signs were known did not differ between virtual environments, (2) participants showed better recall performance on the streets where there was ‘low’ number of signs than the one where there was ‘high’ number of signs, (3) in some cases the participants showed similar recall performances in virtual environments with colorful signs and in virtual environments with signs of gray tones. If these results can be generalized to various environments and populations, then shop owners may be more willing to help control the quantity and color variation of signs on streets.

387

environmental perception and cognition , virtual environments , Brand recognition , recall , commercial signs

Erciyes University Journal Of The Institute Of Science an‎d Technology

400