Thesis Abstract 1+3

The effect of the built environment on human behavior as seen through the design of low-no income housing communities in the Philippines.

Those who hold the theory of environmental/architectural determinism valid believe that one’s surroundings has a significant influence on his/her actions. This theory introduces the idea that changes in landscaped and architectural elements of the environment will result in changes in behavior, social behavior in particular. Accepting this philosophy as truth, this project examines how it can apply to the redesign of squattertowns in the Philippines; not only changing the behaviors and lifestyle of their inhabitants but in turn also changing an outsider’s attitude towards these poor communities.