Abstract
This paper presents an analysis of selected problems in environmental psychology. It starts from a focus on independently defined dimensions of the environment and examines the functional relationships between these and given behavioral variables, by recourse to a variety of constructs derived from theory and research in the realms of exploratory behavior, experimental aesthetics, arousal and levels of stimulation, and adaptation level. The approach is illustrated with respect to three particular problem areas: the stimulus correlates of environmental preference, the optimal-level-of-stimulation problem, and the role of frame of reference, i.e., adaptation level, in environmental assessment. The treatment of these problems dwells on diverse, theoretical, and methodological problems involved in the isolation and specification of pertinent environmental variables, as well as in the handling of individual differences, and of variables relating to the person, in the context of the proposed approach built on the postulate of an objectively definable environment. An investigation of the evaluation of environments by migrants who have moved from communities of differing sizes to New York City is presented in some detail to illustrate the applicability of the adaptation-level framework to judgments of diverse environmental attributes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Appley, M. (Ed.). Adaptation-level theory: A symposium. New York: Academic Press, 1971.
Berlyne, D. E. Conflict, arousal and curiosity. New York: Mraw-Hill, 1960.
Berlyne, D. E. Arousal and reinforcement. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, 1967, 15, 1–110.
Berlyne, D. E. Aesthetics andpsychobiology. New York: Appleton-Century, 1971.
Berlyne, D. E. (Ed.). Studies in the new experimental aesthetics. New York: Wiley, 1974.
Berlyne, D. E., and Madsen, K. B. (Eds.). Pleasure, reward, preference: Their nature, determinants, and role in behavior. New York: Academic Press, 1973.
Brunswik, E. Perception and the representative design of psychological experiments. Berkeley, California: University of California Press, 1956.
Carr, S., & Schissler, D. The city as a trip; Perceptual selection and memory in the view from the road. Environment and Behavior, 1969, 7, 7–36.
Dorfman, D. D. and Menna, H. Pattern preference as a function of pattern uncertainty. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 1966, 20, 143–153.
Ertel, S. Exploratory choice and verbal judgment. In D. E. Berlyne and K. B. Madsen (Eds.), Pleasure, reward, preference. New York: Academic Press, 1973.
Fiske, D. W. and Maddi, S. R. A conceptual framework. In D. W. Fiske and S. R. Maddi (Eds.), Functions of varied experience. Homewood, Illinois: Dorsey Press, 1961.
Franck, K. A., Unseld, C. T., & Wentworth, W. R. Adaptation of the newcomer: A process of construction. Unpublished manuscript, 1974.
Gibson, J. J. The perception of the visual world. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton-Mifflin, 1950.
Gibson, J. J. The senses considered as perceptual systems. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton-Mif- flin, 1966.
Gibson, J. J. An ecological approach to visual perception. Manuscript in preparation, 1973.
Guilford, J. P. Psychometric methods (2nd ed.) New York: Mraw-Hill, 1954.
Gump, P. V. The behavior setting: A promising unit for environmental designers. Landscape Architecture, 1971, 61, 130–134.
Haggard, E. A. Some effects of geographic and social isolation in natural settings. In J. Rasmussen (Ed.), Man in isolation and confinement. Chicago, Illinois: Aldine, 1973.
Hebb, D. O. The organization of behavior. New York: Wiley, 1949.
Heckhausen, H. Complexity in perception: phenomenal criteria and information theoretic calculus—a note on D. E. Berlyne’s “Complexity Effects.” Canadian fournal of Psychology. 1964, 18, 168–173.
Helson, H. Adaptation-level theory. New York: Harper & Row, 1964.
Hollos, M. C. & Cowan, F. A. Social isolation and cognitive development: Logical operations and role-taking abilities in three Norwegian social settings. Child Development, 1973, 44, 630–641.
Ittelson, W. H. Environmental perception and contemporary perceptual theory. In W. H. Ittelson (Ed.), Environment and cognition. New York: Seminar Press, 1973.
Jacobs, J. The death and life of great American cities. New York: Vintage, 1961.
Kaplan, R. Prediction of preference in the outdoor environment. Paper presented at meetings of American Psychological Association, Montreal, 1973.
Kaplan, S. Some functional aspects of environmental preference. Paper presented at meetings of American Psychological Association, Montreal, 1973.
Kaplan, S., Kaplan, R., and Wendt, J. S. Rated preference and complexity for natural and urban visual material. Perception & Psychophysics, 1972, 12, 334–356.
Leuba, C. J. Toward some integration of learning theories: The concept of optimal stimulation. Psychological Reports, 1955, 1, 27–33.
Leuba, C. J. Relation of stimulation intensities to learning and development. Psychological Reports, 1962, 11, 55–65.
Litton, R. B. Jr. Aesthetic dimensions of the landscape. In J. V. Krutilla (Ed.), Natural environments: Studies in theoretical and applied analysis. Baltimore, Maryland. Johns Hopkins Press, 1973.
Lynch, K. The image of the city. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1960.
Michelson, W. Man and his urban environment: A sociological approach. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley, 1970.
Mehrabian, A., and Russell, J. A. An approach to environmental psychology. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1974.
Milgram, S. A psychological map of New York City. American Scientist, 1972, 60, 181–194.
Moos, R, H. Conceptualizations of human environments. American Psychologist, 1973, 28, 652–665.
Rapoport, A., and Hawkes, R. The perception of urban complexity. Journal of the American Institute of Planners, 1970, 36, 106–111.
Rapoport, A., and Kantor, R. E. Complexity and ambiguity in environmental design. Journal of the American Institute of Planners, 1967, 33, 210–222.
Schoenpflug, W. Adaptation, Aktiviertheit und Valenz. Meisenheim, Glan, Germany: Anton Hain, 1971.
Schwarz, H., and Werbik, H. Eine experimentelle Untersuchung über den Einfluss der syntaktischen information der Anordnung von Baukorpern entlang einer Strasse auf Stimmungen des Betrachters. Zeitschrift fur experimentelle und angewandte Psychologie, 1971, 18, 499–511.
Sells, S. B. Dimensions of stimulus situations which account for behavior variance. In S. B. Sells (Ed.), Stimulus determinants of behavior. New York: Ronald Press, 1963.
Sherif, M., and Hovland, C. I. Social judgment. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1961.
Sonnenfeld, J. Environmental perception and adaptation level in the Arctic. In D. Lowenthal (Ed.), Environmental Perception and Behavior. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago, (Department of Geography,Research Paper #109), 1967.
Venturi, R. Complexity and contradiction in architecture. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1966.
Venturi, R., Brown, D. S., and Izenour, S. Learning from Las Vegas. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1972.
Vitz, P. C. Affect as a function of stimulus variation. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1966, 71, 74–79. (a)
Vitz, P. C. Preference for different amounts of visual complexity. Behavioral Science, 1966, 11, 105–114.(b)
Vitz, P. C. Preference for tones as a function of frequency (hertz) and intensity (decibels). Perception and Psychophysics, 1972, 11, 84–88.
Wachs, T. D. Utilization of Piagetian approach in the investigation of early experience effects: A research strategy and some illustrative data. Paper presented at meetings of American Psychological Association, Montreal, 1973.
Wachs, T. D., Uzgiris, I. C., Hunt, J. M. Cognitive development in infants of different age levels and from different environmental backgrounds: An explanatory investigation. Merrill- Palmer Quarterly of Behavior and Development, 1971, 17, 283–317.
Wapner, S., Kaplan, B., and Cohen, S. B. An organismic-developmental perspective for understanding transactions of men in environments. Environment and Behavior, 1973, 5, 255–290.
Welford, A. T. Stress and performance. Ergonomics, 1973, 16, 567–580.
White, B. L. Human infants: Experience and psychological development. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1971.
Wohlwill, J. F. Amount of stimulus exploration and preference as differential functions of stimulus complexity. Perception & Psychophysics, 1968, 4, 307–312.
Wohlwill, J. F. Factors in the differential response to the natural and the man-made environment. Paper presented at meetings of American Psychological Association, Montreal, August, 1973.
Wohlwill, J. F. Environmental stimulation and the development of the child: How much, and what kind? Paper presented at Conference on the Environment and Cognitive Development, Arad, Israel, 1974. (a)
Wohlwill, J. F. The place of aesthetics in studies of the environment. Paper presented at meetings of International Congress of Applied Psychology, Montreal, 1974. (b)
Wohlwill, J. F. Children’s response to meaningful pictures varying in diversity: Exploration time vs. preference. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. In press.
Wohlwill, J. F., & Kohn, I. The environment as experienced by the migrant: An adaptation-level view. Representative Research in Social Psychology, 1973, 4, 135–164.
Zannaras, G. The relation between cognitive structure and urban form: The use of maps and models. In G. Moore & R. Golledge (Eds.), Environmental knowing. Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania: Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross. In press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1976 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wohlwill, J.F., Kohn, I. (1976). Dimensionalizing the Environmental Manifold. In: Wapner, S., Cohen, S.B., Kaplan, B. (eds) Experiencing the Environment. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-4259-5_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-4259-5_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-4261-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-4259-5
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive