Handbook of Environmental Psychology and Quality of Life Research (International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life)

This Handbook presents a broad overview of the current research carried out in environmental psychology which puts into perspective quality of life and relationships with living spaces, and shows how this original analytical framework can be used to understand different environmental and societal issues. Adopting an original approach, this Handbook focuses on the links with other specialties in psychology, especially social and health psychology, together with other disciplines such as geography, architecture, sociology, anthropology, urbanism and engineering. Faced with the problems of society which involve the quality of life of individuals and communities, it is fundamental to consider the relationships an individual has with his different living spaces. This issue of the links between quality of life and environment is becoming increasingly significant with, at a local level, problems resulting from different types of annoyances, such as pollution and noise, while, at a global level, there is the central question of climate change with its harmful consequences for humans and the planet. How can the impact on well-being of environmental nuisances and threats (for example, natural risks, pollution, and noise) be reduced? How can the quality of life within daily living spaces (home, cities, work environments) be improved? Why is it important to understand the psychological issues of our relationship with the global environment (climatic warming, ecological behaviours)? This Handbook is intended not only for students of various disciplines (geography, architecture, psychology, town planning, etc.) but also for social decision-makers and players who will find in it both theoretical and methodological perspectives, so that psychological and environmental dimensions can be better taken into account in their working practices. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Introduction: Environmental Psychology and Quality of Life....Pages 1-8 Front Matter....Pages 9-9 Quality of Life and Sustainability: The End of Quality at Any Price....Pages 11-39 Some Cues for a Positive Environmental Psychology Agenda....Pages 41-63 Linking People-Environment Research and Design. What Is Missing?....Pages 65-83 Place Attachment, Sense of Belonging and the Micro-Politics of Place Satisfaction....Pages 85-104 Front Matter....Pages 105-105 Self, Nature and Well-Being: Sense of Connectedness and Environmental Identity for Quality of Life....Pages 107-126 Restorative Environments and Health....Pages 127-148 Green Exercise, Health and Well-Being....Pages 149-169 Front Matter....Pages 171-171 Sustainable Behavior and Quality of Life....Pages 173-184 Self-Determined, Enduring, Ecologically Sustainable Ways of Life: Attitude as a Measure of Individuals’ Intrinsic Motivation....Pages 185-195 Commitment and Pro-Environmental Behaviors: Favoring Positive Human-Environment Interactions to Improve Quality of Life....Pages 197-210 Pro-environmentalism, Identity Dynamics and Environmental Quality of Life....Pages 211-228 Can Engagement in Environmentally-Friendly Behavior Increase Well-Being?....Pages 229-237 Front Matter....Pages 239-239 Urban Design and Quality of Life....Pages 241-273 The City as an Environment for Urban Experiences and the Learning of Cultural Practices....Pages 275-290 Adjustment to Geographical Space and Psychological Well-Being....Pages 291-307 Front Matter....Pages 309-309 Residential Satisfaction and Quality of Life....Pages 311-328 Spatial Inequalities, Geographically-Based Discrimination and Environmental Quality of Life....Pages 329-343 Children in Cities: The Delicate Issue of Well-Being and Quality of Urban Life....Pages 345-368 Everyday Environments and Quality of Life: Positive School and Neighborhood Environments Influence the Health and Well-Being of Adolescents....Pages 369-384 Front Matter....Pages 385-385 The Effect of Workplace Design on Quality of Life at Work....Pages 387-400 Comfort at Work: An Indicator of Quality of Life at Work....Pages 401-419 Quality of the Hospital Experience: Impact of the Physical Environment....Pages 421-440 Healthy Residential Environments for the Elderly....Pages 441-465 Front Matter....Pages 467-467 Environmental Stress....Pages 469-485 Living in an “At Risk” Environment: The Example of “Costal Risks”....Pages 487-502 Social Inequality and Environmental Risk Perception....Pages 503-518 Living in Industrial Areas: Social Impacts, Adaptation and Mitigation....Pages 519-528 Front Matter....Pages 529-529 Emerging Risks and Quality of Life: Towards New Dimensions of Well-Being?....Pages 531-542 Energy Issues: Psychological Aspects....Pages 543-557 Global Challenges for Environmental Psychology: The Place of Labor and Production....Pages 559-574 "This Handbook presents a broad overview of the current research carried out in environmental psychology which puts into perspective quality of life and relationships with living spaces, and shows how this original analytical framework can be used to understand different environmental and societal issues. Adopting an original approach, this Handbook focuses on the links with other specialties in psychology, especially social and health psychology, together with other disciplines such as geography, architecture, sociology, anthropology, urbanism and engineering. Faced with the problems of society which involve the quality of life of individuals and communities, it is fundamental to consider the relationships an individual has with his different living spaces. This issue of the links between quality of life and environment is becoming increasingly significant with, at a local level, problems resulting from different types of annoyances, such as pollution and noise, while, at a global level, there is the central question of climate change with its harmful consequences for humans and the planet. How can the impact on well-being of environmental nuisances and threats (for example, natural risks, pollution, and noise) be reduced? How can the quality of life within daily living spaces (home, cities, work environments) be improved? Why is it important to understand the psychological issues of our relationship with the global environment (climatic warming, ecological behaviours)?"--Publisher's website