Developing a tool for meeting children’s needs through biophilic design: a combined approach of the Biophilia Interview and Connection to Nature Index – theoretical study

Abstract

Purpose

Nature and biophilic design have received widespread attention in architecture. There has been a need for a new concept of sustainability that includes the interrelationship between humans and the environment. Biophilic design is therefore a comprehensive and sustainable approach that contributes to restoring relationships and connections to promote mental and physical health. The purpose of the paper is to derive a method for measuring and evaluating the impact of incorporating biophilic design into spaces where children are present.

Design/methodology/approach

This research follows a three-stage methodology. The first stage is an Overview, including the concept of biophilia, the concept of biophilic design and its patterns. The second stage consists of methods for evaluating biophilic designed spaces. The third stage attempts to deduce a method for measuring and evaluating the impact of incorporating biophilic design into spaces designated for children on children.

Findings

Integrating the Biophilia Interview Scale and the Nature Connection Index scales could lead to the development of a new scale that captures the child’s understanding of nature, his connection to nature and knowledge of his environmental preferences. Linking this measure to the child’s basic needs aims to enhance the performance of spaces designated for pre-school children and measure the extent to which these spaces meet the child’s environmental preferences and match his basic needs.

Originality/value

There is limited understanding of evaluating preschool spaces in terms of their suitability for children, the extent to which the design patterns used in these spaces meet the child’s preferences and desires, and the extent to which these spaces meet the child’s basic needs. Therefore, this study aims to integrate methods for assessing environmental preferences appropriate for pre-school children and linking them to the child’s basic needs, which ultimately leads to the creation and design of spaces in which children can integrate, interact.

Citation

Ghanem, A.F., Aggour, M.M. and Fahmy, M.K. (2025), "Developing a tool for meeting children’s needs through biophilic design: a combined approach of the Biophilia Interview and Connection to Nature Index – theoretical study", Open House International, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/OHI-07-2024-0235