Assessment of Social Interaction in Sense of Place: Rethinking the Design of Neighborhood Center in Urban space, Case study: Boshrooyeh City

Abstract

Environmental psychology has been reinforced by focusing on the experiential sense of place in urban environment. In Iranian urban researches, the role of neighborhood center design to reinforce the social interaction and sense of place has not been adequately explored. The purpose of this study was to explore this claim that neighborhood center with its unique attributes can provide an approproiate place that residents promot their interaction within. The study was conducted in the form of a survey, with data being gathered via questionnaire from 174 randomly selected residents. Miandeh neighborhood center of Boshroyeh city in Iran was conducted as a case study. Analysis revealed that use singularity and appearance of alley encourage interaction between people in neighborhood center. The results also demonstrated that social interaction has an impact in increasing the sense of place in residents due to their interaction with other neighbors. The paper concludes by emphasizing that planners should consider the NC in design of urban space due to its contribution in the social interaction and sense of place in residents. Ultimately, existing elements in neighborhood center can create effective factors to make the image in people’s memories and provide social network and interaction between people with a place.