Isabella Bower

University of South Australia | UniSA

Understanding built environment exposure as a component of environmental enrichment has significant implications for mental health, but little is known about the effects design characteristics have on our emotions and associated neurophysiology. Using a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment while monitoring indoor environmental quality (IEQ), 18 parti...

Studies investigating environmental enrichment have shown that exposure to enhanced sensory, cognitive, motor and social stimulation results in behavioural, cellular and molecular alterations in animal models. However, the evidence-base for the neurophysiological impact from environmental enrichment in humans has not been widely examined. This pape...

There is currently no robust method to evaluate how built environment design affects our emotion. Understanding emotion is significant, as it influences cognitive processes, behavior, and wellbeing, and is linked to the functioning of physiological systems. As mental health problems are becoming more prevalent, and exposure to indoor environments i...

Examinations are a widely used assessment method in higher education. They are often conducted in large indoor environments that can accommodate high numbers of students to maximize scheduling and cost efficiency. Recent evidence, however, suggests enlarged room scale impacts brain activity that is associated with concentration, which could negativ...

The Journal of Environmental Psychology, in agreement with the authors, retracted the above-mentioned published article in recognition of honest errors on 27 September 2024. The authors alerted the journal on the 10 July 2024 after detecting honest errors post-publication, requesting the article be temporarily withdrawn immediately while they inves...

This study explored constraints and opportunities in apartment kitchen design for family home cooking and dining. An online audit of 115 two-bedroom apartments in three Melbourne suburbs of Australia was conducted, with images collected from the audit guiding photo-elicitation interviews on the kitchen designs, with architects from firms involved i...

* Corrected record (pre-print, 08/10/2024): https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/j7bf4 * Retracted manuscript (original with error, 26/06/2024): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102367

Do buildings affect how we feel and, if so, how can we tell? Currently, we can only ask people, which relies on them being able to accurately identify their emotions. As our emotions influence how we think, behave, and work, it is important to understand whether the places we spend time in, like our homes, offices, schools, and hospitals, affect us...

Neuroscience reveals how building design shapes our behavioral, brain, and body responses

Cannabis-derived compounds, such as cannabidiol (CBD) and delta-9-trans-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), are increasingly prescribed for a range of clinical indications. These phyto-cannabinoids have multiple biological targets, including the body's endocannabinoid system. There is growing scientific interest in the use of CBD, a non-intoxicating compou...

Natural environments are increasingly acknowledged as social determinants of mental, physical, and social health, and are a widely accessible multi-sectorial planning modality. Yet, in the context of several reviews conducted by the authors, we have observed that sometimes the multifarious, quantitative research investigating impacts of natural env...

Understanding brain activity linked to built environment exposure is important, as it may affect underlying cognitive, perceptual, and emotional processes, which have a critical influence in our daily life. As our time spent inside buildings is rising, and mental health problems have become more prevalent, it is important we investigate how design...

There is currently no robust method to evaluate how built environment design affects our emotion. Understanding emotion is significant, as it influences cognitive processes, behaviour, and wellbeing, and is linked to the functioning of physiological systems. As mental health problems are becoming more prevalent, and exposure to indoor environments...