كاربرد علوم محيطي در فرايند مطالعاتي طراحي شهري

APPLICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES IN URBAN DESIGN RESEARCH PROCESS

Currently in response to new issues, urban design has found a new form. The traditional, static, personal approach is now replaced with a new, dynamic, communal approach. Urban design in the modern era still had a static approach based on the old traditions and had a deterministic view about man-environment relationships. In the post modern era emphasize is on the symbolic meaning of the environment and non-physiologic aspects of man. Urban design is concerned with the effects of environment on userʹs behavior, cognition and affect. The normative theories determine design goals, while descriptive theories are used to define the effects of design actions in achieving these goals. Four groups are involved with environmental issues including activists, humanists, experimentalists and planner/designers. Collaboration between these groups could be achieved in an appropriate research process. The activists could contribute to defining problems, humanists in hypothesis making, positivists in hypothesis testing and theorization and finally planners in providing solutions and practical action. The role of behavioral sciences in this process is providing descriptive theories using the scientific research methods. Behavioral sciences help the planners to take proper actions through which to reach predetermined goals and objectives.