Isovists as a Means to Predict Spatial Experience and Behavior

Two experiments are presented studying interrelations between spatial properties of environments and both experience and spatial behavior. In order to systematically study such interrelations, a generic description of space is required that provides comparability between arbitrarily shaped environments and captures behaviorally relevant properties of space. In this study the suitability of isovist derived measurands for this purpose was explored. Isovist-based descriptions of 16 virtual indoor scenes were correlated with behavioral data from two experimental tasks. For both tasks, an active navigation task and a rating of experiential qualities, strong correlations between subjects’ behavior and measurands derived from isovist analysis were found. The general outcomes suggest that isovist measurands are indeed a promising means to predict the experience of space and spatial behavior for the chosen experimental tasks.