flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Study explores why high ceilings are popular

Architects

Study explores why high ceilings are popular

High ceilings give us a sense of freedom, new research finds


By BD+C Staff | March 9, 2015
Study finds out why most people like high ceilings

Interior view of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. Photo courtesy Jean_Christophe Benoist/Wikimedia Commons

Real-estate listings usually include high ceilings as an amenity. This makes sense, as research has shown that home buyers tend to prefer homes above the standard eight-foot ceiling.

A recent study done by a team from the University of Toronto-Scarborough (UTS), who revealed to us recently why the human brain prefers curvy buildings, also explored why high ceilings are desirable.

Led by psychologist Oshin Vartanian of the UTS found that our brains tie high ceilings to a psychological sense of freedom, Fast Company reports.

In addition, the team also looked at the brain activity of research subjects who were placed under a neuroimaging scanner as they reviewed pictures of interiors. They found that the majority of respondents labeled a space with high ceilings as “beautiful.”

“Such rooms promote visuospatial exploration,” Vartanian told Fast Company. “At the same time they prompt us to think more freely. This could be a rather potent combination for inducing positive feelings.”

Fast Company has the full report.

Related Stories

| Oct 4, 2011

GREENBUILD 2011: Mythic Paint launches two new paint products

A high performance paint, and a combination paint and primer now available. 

| Oct 4, 2011

GREENBUILD 2011: Wall protection line now eligible to contribute to LEED Pilot Credit 43

The Cradle-to-Cradle Certified Wall Protection Line offers an additional option for customers to achieve LEED project certification.

| Oct 3, 2011

Magellan Development Group opens Village Market in Chicago’s Lakeshore East neighborhood

Magellan Development Group and Hanwha Engineering & Construction are joint-venture development partners on the project. The Village Market was designed for Silver LEED certification by Loewenberg Architects and built by McHugh Construction. 

| Oct 3, 2011

Balance bunker and Phase III projects breaks ground at Mitsubishi Plant in Georgia

The facility, a modification of similar facilities used by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Inc. (MHI) in Japan, was designed by a joint design team of engineers and architects from The Austin Company of Cleveland, Ohio, MPSA and MHI.

| Oct 3, 2011

Cauceglia to lead Allsteel’s global accounts

Cauceglia is responsible for developing new global business strategies and expanding existing business within the Fortune 500 sector.

| Sep 30, 2011

BBS Architects & Engineers completes welcoming center at St. Charles Resurrection Cemetery

The new structure serves as the cemetery's focal architectural point and center of operations.  

| Sep 30, 2011

Kilbourn joins Perkins Eastman

Kilbourn joins with more than 28 years of design and planning experience for communities, buildings, and interiors in hospitality, retail/mixed-use, corporate office, and healthcare.

| Sep 30, 2011

Design your own floor program

Program allows users to choose from a variety of flooring and line accent colors to create unique floor designs to complement any athletic facility. 

| Sep 30, 2011

AAMA offers electronic technical documents with launch of virtual library

This new program offers a system for members to purchase annual licenses in order to offer electronic versions of AAMA publications in an effort to make AAMA’s technical information resources more readily available to their employees.

| Sep 29, 2011

Submit your Great Solutions

Profiles of Great Solutions will appear in December 2011 issue of Building Design+Construction.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category


Retail Centers

Thinking outside the big box (store)

For over a decade now, the talk of the mall industry has been largely focused on what developers can do to fill the voids left by a steady number of big box store closures. But what do you do when big box tenants stay put?


Government Buildings

OSHA’s proposed heat standard published in Federal Register

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published a proposed standard addressing heat illness in outdoor and indoor settings in the Federal Register. The proposed rule would require employers to evaluate workplaces and implement controls to mitigate exposure to heat through engineering and administrative controls, training, effective communication, and other measures.


halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021