Apports de l'expérience multi-sensorielle de l'Architecture des jardins en Psychologie positive

Abstract

The Hamma test garden has been rehabilitated as part of the implementation of the "Green Plan" program in the capital Algiers. The reopening of this important space to the public has been a great success with visitors in search of greenery, discovery and well-being. The Hamma garden is distinguished from the other green spaces of the capital by its mixed style, an important influx of visitors, and by awakening in them joy and relaxation. This led us to target the study of the impact of the multi-sensorial experience of walks in this garden in positive psychology, and to define the importance of the perception of the various sensorial parameters for the success of green spaces in satisfying visitors during the summer period. Our objective is to propose an approach to characterize the subjective well-being of the garden and to establish recommendations for a more attractive design of green spaces, especially in summer. In order to achieve these objectives, we have adopted a multidisciplinary approach, drawing on architecture, weather and climate sciences, positive and environmental psychology. In order to evaluate the contribution of the multi-sensory experience of the architecture of the different spaces of the garden to positive psychology, we observed the walkers, and we carried out a survey among the visitors and workers of the test garden. Stakeholders were invited to participate in commented walks and to answer self-evaluation tests related to the primary emotions and alliesthesias felt in each of the three major spaces of the garden: French garden, English garden and zoological garden. The collected verbatim were used to evaluate the affect category of attitudes using IntenChek software, and to present the schematization of well-being experienced by the attitude pathway. We also carried out climatic measurements, using micro weather stations in the three studied spaces of the garden, and portable measurement probes for campaigns passing through the same path of the commentary routes, which allowed us to cross-reference the results of the selfevaluation tests, and the verbatim of the commented walks to study thermal alliesthesia. The analysis of the data showed the importance of the impact of environmental stimuli; morphological, sensory and perceptual factors, on the subjective well-being and the use of the different facilities. Consequently, we were able to propose an index of momentary subjective wellbeing based on the state of multi-sensory pleasures, and to characterize the garden spaces in subjective well-being in relation to hedonism, by evaluating different categories of affects; emotions, alliesthesias and attitudes.