Calculating Space: A Design Framework Based on Behavior Mapping and Connectivity Measures

Pai Liu (Clemson University)

The technologies in the field of healthcare is far more advanced worldwide. However, most studies regarding the healthcare environment, especially elder care environment, are still conducted using traditional methods such as interviews, focus groups, and on-site observations rather than adopting new methods such as network connectivity measures, which were widely used in transportation planning, urban design and indoor circulation simulation. This research aims to integrate behavior mapping with connectivity measures to develop a new design framework for elder care environments by interpreting the importance of various spaces in healthcare environment.

A senior center in Atlanta, United States was selected for this study. The behavior mapping was conducted by two well-trained observers following the same route but starting from different directions hourly from 9 am to 1 pm. The spaces of the senior center were categorized into three groups, services areas, entertainment areas, and rest areas. 33 points were selected those three groups and marked on the floor plan as observation points. Based on the numbers of people staying at a specific point during the observation period, a value was given to each point to demonstrate the significance of that point in elders’ daily activities. The connectivity significance of each point weighted with its corresponding value was then calculated based on the Graph theory using customized parametric tools. A design framework was proposed from the results by analyzing the different spaces and usage. The framework highlighted the connectivity of service areas and entertainment areas, such as the pathway connecting dinning tables and billiard tables. The design frame are expected to potentially inform the future design regarding healthcare environments, for example, for retirement communities, senior centers, and group homes.