The "broken window theory" states that visible signs of crime, anti-social behaviour in the public space such as littering, graffiti, broken windows encourage further minor crimes and disorder. This happens because people look to other people in deciding how to behave in an environment and are more likely to
In 2007, two cognitive psychologists concluded that angular shapes trigger fear in us as they suggest potential injury. Think thorns and spines of a plant, the sharp teeth of an animal, or the cutting edge of a rock. They also concluded that the sharper the angle,
In 2012, The Massachusets General Hospital designed an experiment. They wanted to see if they could persuade people to drink water instead of soda in the hospital Cafeteria simply by changing how the Cafeteria was set up. Initially, the refrigerators were only filled with soda, and
What are you most likely to do when you go into your living room? You are most likely to sit on the couch. And what are you most likely to do when you sit on the couch? You are most likely to turn on the
Have you ever wondered why restaurants use dim lights? Could there be a financial gain from creating an atmosphere? According to research, light can affect the way you eat. Soft lighting can calm us down and makes us more comfortable and disinhibited. In this state, we want
Throughout human evolution, seeing colour has helped us identify food and differentiate the tree's fruits from the leaves. Seeing bright colour activates an ancient circuit in our brain that lights up with pleasure and happiness at the idea of finding something sweet to eat. So colour
If you think about it, the majority of living creatures are symmetrical. So in the evolution of human beings, symmetry can symbolise something that we could eat or something that could eat us. Humans are innately designed to spot symmetry quickly because our survival depended on
Three tips on how to make your home more friendly to your brain.
One of the things that have fascinated me all my life is understanding how space impacts people's mood and behaviour. This idea has been influenced by two trends: POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY: For the longest time, psychology has looked at making sick people better, but recently psychology has wondered