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

| Aug 11, 2010

AIA hires Worthen, Fitzgerald for sustainability, young architects initiatives

As part of an ongoing effort to bolster its education and outreach on sustainability, the American Institute of Architects has hired William J. Worthen, AIA, LEED AP, vice president of Simon & Associates (a green consulting firm) as Director and Resource Architect for Sustainability. The AIA has also hired Kevin A. Fitzgerald, AIA, a former associate with Robert AM Stern Architects, as a staff coordinator/team leader for several AIA committees devoted to young architects.

| Aug 11, 2010

Perkins+Will acquires Canadian firm Shore Tilbe Irwin & Partners

Shore Tilbe Irwin & Partners of Toronto, Ont., Canada, has been acquired by Perkins+Will, a global integrated design firm headquartered in Chicago. The merger marks Perkins+Will's 19th office in North America and its second in Canada.

| Aug 11, 2010

NBBJ and C.T. Hsu associates join forces for Florida healthcare market

NBBJ has entered into an exclusive alliance agreement with C.T. Hsu + Associates P.A. (CTHA)  to provide world-class design/planning services for Florida's emerging healthcare and science facilities market. The alliance combines NBBJ's international reputation for the design and planning of healthcare and science & research facilities with CTHA's knowledge of community needs and established reputation for planning and design expertise in Central Florida.

| Aug 11, 2010

Minneapolis Public Housing authority, Honeywell launch energy retrofit program

Minneapolis Public Housing Authority and Honeywell today announced a $33.6-million energy efficiency and facility renewal program that will help the housing authority improve its infrastructure, reduce its impact on the environment, and save more than $3.7 million in utility costs per year. Local contractors will also complete a majority of the work for the program, one of the largest of its kind for a public housing authority, helping boost the Twin Cities job market.

| Aug 11, 2010

Shepley Bulfinch announces merger of Merzproject

National architecture firm Shepley Bulfinch of Boston and Merzproject of Phoenix today announced their merger. The merger unites Shepley Bulfinch, one of the country’s leading design firms, and Merzproject.

| Aug 11, 2010

Skanska Promotes Richard Kennedy to COO for NY/NJ Metro Area

Skanska USA Building Inc., headquartered in Parsippany, N.J., has announced that Richard Kennedy was promoted to Chief Operating Officer from his previous role as Senior Vice President – General Counsel. Kennedy’s promotion marks the latest addition to Skanska’s national leadership team.

| Aug 11, 2010

The New Yorker's David Owen: Why Manhattan is America's greenest community

David Owen is a staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of 14 books, most recently Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less Are the Keys to Sustainability, in which he argues that Manhattan is the greenest community in America. He graduated from Harvard and lives in Washington, Conn., where he chairs the town planning commission.

| Aug 11, 2010

Brown Craig Turner opens senior living studio

Baltimore-based architecture and design firm Brown Craig Turner has significantly expanded its housing design capabilities and expertise with the launch of its new senior living studio.

| Aug 11, 2010

George H. Miller, FAIA, inaugurated as 2010 AIA President

George H. Miller, FAIA, partner at Pei Cobb Freed & Partners LLP, was inaugurated as the 86th president of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) during ceremonies held on December 4th.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




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