Aesthetic Elements of Urban Environments and their relation to Wellbeing: A scoping review.

• DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/nxvtq
• Publication Date: 2024-06-24T10:46:32Z
• Authors: Kirren Chana; Margot Dehove; Jan Mikuni; Eva Specker; Anna Lena Knoll; Tristan Barrière; mackenzie D Trupp; Matthew Pelowski; Elisabeth Oberzau...; Helmut Leder

Urban human-made environments present a range of potential benefits for wellbeing through their design. However, there is a lack of comprehensive organization on this topic. To this end, we performed a scoping review to provide an overview of how the urban environment, particularly its designed components, has been previously studied in relation to aesthetics and wellbeing. A total of 255 articles related to urban aesthetics were identified, of which 122 were also related to wellbeing. The results showed the frequency (most and least studied) and the diversity in the man-made components, aesthetic and wellbeing dimensions studied in relation to the urban environment within two decades. Our review highlights the need for consensus in terminology regarding the distinction between aesthetics and wellbeing concepts, and which terms/measures ought to be implemented more in environmental psychology research. All in all, we provide the basis for (1) researchers from various fields, who can use our findings to plan future studies, and (2) urban planners and designers alike, who can use our review to assess the aesthetic and wellbeing potential of urban elements for their designs; so that they can make our cities more aesthetically pleasing, better for wellbeing, and, fundamentally, better places to live.