The Effect of Designing Urban Public Spaces on Place Attachment (Case study: Tabriz, Iran)

Today, a major range of studies in architecture and urban design have been devoted to concepts such as place attachment, place identity, and etc. In all these studies, human-human interaction, human-place interaction and the impact of place on people are fundamental subjects of analysis. Place attachment is closely related to satisfaction, emotional characteristics, physical characteristics, attitudes and experiences in a place, belief, and etc. With the growth of urban population, changes in the work and life patterns, increased distancing from the natural origins as the setting which provides peace of mind and thought for people in modern life, the need for focusing on design factors that are effective in increasing social interactions in urban spaces has gained further significance, and has turned into one of the major needs. The aim of this paper is to explore the concept of place attachment in the context of urban spaces design factor. In this research, Tabriz-Iran has been chosen as the sample for this study. Cochran’s formula was used to determine sampling volume and questionnaires were distributed among citizens; then the required data have been collected and analyzed via SPSS software. The research findings show that: Designing urban spaces with an approach toward third place has a significant impact on the level of place attachment. Therefore, factors that are effective in promoting place attachment, the sense of belonging, and the dynamics of space, should always be given a further consideration by architects and urban planners in designing these areas.