An Investigation of the Influence of the Night Lighting in a Urban Park on Individuals’ Emotions

Massimiliano Masullo, Federico Cioffi, Jian Li, Luigi Maffei, Michelangelo Scorpio, Tina Iachini, Gennaro Ruggiero, Antonio Malferà and Francesco Ruotolo
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Massimiliano Masullo: Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via San Lorenzo, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Federico Cioffi: Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via San Lorenzo, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Jian Li: Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via San Lorenzo, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Luigi Maffei: Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via San Lorenzo, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Michelangelo Scorpio: Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via San Lorenzo, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Tina Iachini: Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Viale Ellittico 31, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Gennaro Ruggiero: Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Viale Ellittico 31, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Antonio Malferà: Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Viale Ellittico 31, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Francesco Ruotolo: Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Viale Ellittico 31, 81100 Caserta, Italy

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 14, 1-13

Abstract: Outdoor urban lighting design is a complex issue. It involves multiple aspects (energy consumption, lighting pollution, aesthetics, and safety) that must be balanced to make sustainable decisions. Although the energy and environmental issues assumed a driving role in the optimization of the urban lighting design, its impact on the psychophysical well-being of individuals has received less attention. Artificial lighting has been shown to add several meanings to an individual’s experience of space: affective (affect, emotion, mood), cognitive (attention, imagination, perception), associative (memory, judgment), and motivational (closeness, openness, communication). Traditionally, studies on the effects of lighting on individuals’ emotions have mainly focused on indoor spaces, while the present study aims to investigate the influence of lighting on individuals’ emotions in an outdoor environment. Participants experienced a simulated urban park through virtual reality. Specifically, the urban park was shown with different combinations of overall illuminance (high vs medium vs low) and correlated colour temperature (CCT) (warm vs intermediate vs cool). For each combination, participants were asked to judge how they felt. In general, results showed that high-intensity cool light made participants more nervous, while warm light made individuals feel more tired and less motivated to explore the park. In contrast, an intermediate CCT at low or medium illuminance impacted individuals positively. Finally, it was found that participants’ mood predicted the impact that park lighting would have on them. These results suggest that assessing the influence of lighting on individuals’ emotions allows the decision-makers to implement the type of artificial lighting that will simultaneously safeguard both the well-being of individuals and the environment.

Keywords: urban parks; lighting; virtual reality; emotional assessment; sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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