Aim: This article reviews and addresses various spatial measures that provide and facilitate accurate descriptions of different layout typologies with particular focus on healthcare facilities.
Background: Evidence-based design is a field of study that emphasizes the importance of using credible data in order to influence the design process. It addresses whether/how the design and operation of buildings support positive health outcomes through a growing collection of solutions informed by research and practical knowledge. In order to acquire this knowledge, we must consider the environment in a very precise and measurable way, which can then be investigated quantitatively with regard to various human behaviors and cognitive processes.
Topical headings: Space Syntax theory and methods are concerned with understanding how spaces are arranged and connected to one another. It provides quantitative measures of individual spaces and of the entire layout, thereby achieving great accuracy. Space Syntax researchers have used graph theory to define spatial measures and have produced computer tools to quantify the relational properties of spaces and to provide numerical and display values for each. Moreover, they have developed more precise tools that can be embedded within basic Space Syntax concepts in order to augment the credibility of the acquired data.
Conclusion: The study elaborates on the effectiveness of Space Syntax and its newly developed measures for the field of healthcare facility design and research. We present a comprehensive model that brings together these measures with their correlated behavioral and perceptual consequences, thereby providing a point of departure for further investigation and exploration.
Keywords: Space Syntax; behavior; evidence-based design; healthcare; spatial analysis.
© The Author(s) 2016.