Psychology and Space

Code:

LPSI312

Acronym:

PE

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Psychology

Instance: 2025/2026 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Psychology
Course/CS Responsible:	First degree in Psychology

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
LPSIC	36	Official Curricular Structure	3	-	3	27	81

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

This CU seeks to raise awareness and consolidate students' knowledge by a relatively new area of psychology, especially given his relationship with other domains of knowledge. We refer to issues concerning the built environment and built by man, the questions of urbanism and its influence / impact on whether or not promotion of human development and their psychological well-being. The possibility to observe, reflect and discuss real situations, whether about  experiences in single-family’s spaces, institutional spaces, or the participation and experience in construction and enjoyment of public spaces, allows students to empower themselves to raise awareness (and intervention) in this specific field, deepening a central theme in the lives of individuals - their intimate, social, public and community spaces  - where they necessarily and obligatory, live and experience through life cycle.

 

Learning outcomes and competences

 

- Historical perspective of the relationship between architecture, urban planning and psychology.- The environment as an area producer of psychological development, theories and effects of urban life, physical settings, social-economic and political factors;- Concepts of living space, personal space, public space, location, unique ambience: the relationships between visible and invisible factors of space and the bidirectional relationships person-environment: concepts of affordance, perception environmental, socio-spatial behavior; reflections on issues of symbolic and affective person-environment relationship; place attachmente concept;- The role of Community Psychology (sense of belonging,  neighborhood,  participation and joint management with spaces) to the emergence of psychological illness;- The concept of participative projects and the need of multidisciplinary teams (architects, planners and psychologists).- The possibilities of intervention of the psychologist in this field: the study of person-environment relationship(s) as a means of promoting psychological well-being

Working method

Presencial

Program

- Historical perspective about the relations beteewn psychology, architecture and urbanism. 

- Natural and built environments: physical settings, economic, political and social factors.

 -Concepts of Proxemics, living space, personal space, public space, the concepts of affordance, environmental perception, symbolic and affective issues of the person-environment relationship; concept of attachment to place; between others.

- The role of Community Psychology (sense of belonging and neighborhood, participation, and articulation with space management);

 - Participatory design and multidisciplinary teams (psychologists, architects, urban planners, sociologists,...).

 - The possibilities for psychologists to work: the study of the person-environment(s) relationship as a way of promoting psychological well-being

Mandatory literature

Bernardo. F. ; palma Oliveira, J.M.; ; Place Change and Identity Processes.. ISBN: 1576-6462

Teaching methods and learning activities

Presentation and discussion of the syllabus encouraging the active participation of students;- Discussion and deepening of specific cases operationalized in many areas, including social housing, community intervention in public spaces, institutions and others,...- Contact with intervention programs such as urban regeneration, whether domestic or foreign, and its implications for living people, and their participation in their conceptualization;- Contact with psychologists and other professionals who have issues related to the research and intervention in this area;- Presentation by students of a work to be discussed within the group;The evaluation is based on the performance of  a field work using various methodologies.

 

 

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

designation	Weight (%)
Participação presencial	25,00
Prova oral	25,00
Trabalho de campo	25,00
Trabalho escrito	25,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

designation	Time (hours)
Estudo autónomo	24,00
Frequência das aulas	27,00
Trabalho de campo	15,00
Trabalho escrito	15,00
Total:	81,00

Eligibility for exams

Terms of frequency: It is recommended effective presence of the students  in 3/4 of the practical lessons given. To be aproved the student must obtain a minimum of 10 points out of 20, and each of the components of the distributed evaluation must have a minimun of 9 points out of 20 . Distributed evaluation includes the presence on classes, the field work, the presentation and discussion ok a work about a topic related in classes and it is also requested a paper with a) the identification of the main content, b) the objectives to be achieved and c) the bibliography consulted. All the components of the distributed evaluation  must be organized in small groups (2 a 3 elements each).  The final classification results from the arithmetical mean of both quotations and will be expressed in a 0-20 scale.

Formula Evaluation: Evaluation is distributed and the final classification results from the arithmetical mean the several quotations  of each component and will be expressed in a 0-20 scale

Calculation formula of final grade

Evaluation is distributed and the final classification results from the arithmetical mean the several quotations  of each component and will be expressed in a 0-20 scale

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

Follow the FPCE regulamentation

Classification improvement

In the following school year

Observations

Classes are in portuguese language