IS/Don/52/o3 
P E O P L E F R I E N D L Y A P A R T M E N T S 
CO-RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HEIGHT AND PERSONAL SPACE 
"•• ' '•" ' " \ \ . 3f,j i&ffii 
A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE 
UNIVERSITY OF MORATUWA,SRI LANKA 
AS PART OF THE FNAL EXAMINATION 
IN M.Sc. (ARCHITECTURE) 2002 
M.S.K.XALANSOORIYA 
/ / o • ^ ^-
FACULTY OF ARCHITECTURE " 7 R / "7 5 
UNIVERSITY OF MORATUWA 
SRI LANKA 
University of M o r a t u w a 
78177 
7 8 1 7 2 
CONTENTS 
Page 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS iii 
ACKNOWLEGEMENT vii 
ABATRACT viii 
INTRODUCTION x 
CHAPTER ONE 1 
1.0.BASE TO THE STUDY- SPACE PLACE AND PERSONAL SPACE. 1 
1.1 Space g ive s d imens ion to the place 2 
1.1.1 Primit ive Space 3 
1.1.2 Perceptual Space 4 
1.1.3 Existential space 5 
1.1.4 Architectural space 6 
1.2 Place and M a n 7 
1.2.2 Image o f the place 8 
1.2.3 Individual image o f the place 8 
1.3 Personal space 9 
1.3 Personal space and its Attributes 10 
1.3.1 Psycho log ica l Aspec t s 
1.3.2 Personality 
1.3.3 Culture 
1.4 Importance o f the Personal space 12 
1.5 Architecture and its contribution to the personal space 13 
CHAPTER T W O 
2.0. HOUSE, HOME AND SETTLEMENTS. 15 
2 .1 . Concept o f the house and h o m e in the built environment 15 
2.1.1 House in Built Environment 15 
2 .1 .2 Sense o f B e l o n g i n g n e s s 1 7 
2.1.3 Concept o f H o m e 18 
(a) Centre 
(b) Continuity 
(c) Enclosure 
2.2 H o m e as a Private Domain 23 
2.3 Psychologica l Concepts in H o m e Private D o m a i n 25 
2.5.1 Identity 
2 .5 .2 .Privacy 
2.5.3.territory 
2 .5 .4 Orientation 
2 .4 Relationship be tween the Location and H o m e 28 
2.5 D e v e l o p m e n t o f the physical Order o f the H o m e 30 
2.5.1 Birth if house 30 
2 .5 .2 Sett lements in Primitive Soc ie ty 31 
2.5.3 Sett lements Modern Soc ie ty 32 
CHAPTER THREE 34 
3.0 LIVING IN APARTMENTS. 34 
3.1 Urbanization 34 
3 .1 .1 . Hous ing 35 
3 .1 .2 . Problem o f hous ing 36 
3.1.3 Emergence o f vertical l iv ing 
3.1.3.1 Global Context 
3.1.3.1 Local Context 
3.2 Concept o f h o m e in vertical l iv ing-Changes o f D i m e n s i o n s with 
verticality 
3.2.1 .Level o f interaction 
3 .2 .2 . Level o f sense o f be long ings 
3 .2 .3 .Leve l o f identity 
3 .2 .4 .Leve l o f privacy 
3 .2 .5 .Level o f security 
3.4 Making o f home relation to the changing d i m e n s i o n s 
CHAPTER FOUR 
4.0.EXAMINATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE 
HEIGHT AND PERSONAL SPACE. 
4.0 . Case Study one 
4 .1 . Purpose o f the study 
4 .2 . Method o f study 
4 .3 . Study 
4 .3 .1 . General Background 
« 4 .3 .2 . Floor Level 
4 .3 .2 .1 . Social Character o f the unit 
4 .3 .2 .2 . Physical Character o f the unit 
4 .3 .2 .3 . Physical form o f the unit 
(a) Spatial Arrangement -Given 
(b) Spatial Arrangement-Exist in 
4 .3 .2 .4 . Interior Character 
CONCLUSION 
BIBLIOGRAPHY 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
Figure Page 
Fig 1. Unselfconscious arrangement of the village 5 
Fig 2. Desirability of the harmony with nature 6 
Fig 3. Place generate meaningful place 7 
Fig 4. Personal space express personal needs 9 
Fig 5. Invisible personal boundary of child 12 
Fig 6. Relationship of personal space and Architecture 13 
Fig 7. Shelter is basic need 16 
Fig 8. Sense of secure in the inside of house 17 
Fig 9. Horniness is not neatness 18 
Fig 10. Connection with outsiders 20 
Fig 11. Home provides Territory 23 
Fig 12. Home shows mans relationship with outside 26 
Fig 13. Making of her own Territory .27 
Fig 14. Isolation from the interaction 28 
Fig 15. Location expresses the personalized attitudes 29 
Fig 16. Accumulating cells 32 
Fig 17. Community Living 32 
Fig 18. Consequence development in the city centers 34 
Fig 19. Problem of housing on the third world 36 
Fig 20. Vertical living in the global context 38 
Fig 21. Less interaction of upper levels with ground 41 
Fig 22. For get continuity 42 
Fig 23. Different colourse use to have a variety 44 
Fig 24. Entrance door protected with the stone 46 
Fig 25. Territorial demarcation through coloures 47 
Fig 26. Front view- Eight storied apartment 52 
Fig 27. Territorial demarcation act as a front verandah 53 
Fig 28. Spatial arrangement -Given - Ground floor level -House A 54 
Fig 29. Spatial arrangement-Existing-House A 55 
Fig 30. Furniture arrangement- Living Room 56 
Fig 31. View of living room 56 
Fig 32. Furniture arrangement-Bed Room 56 
Fig 33. View of Bedroom 57 
Fig 34. Furniture arrangement-Kitchen 57 
Fig 35. Extended Front Garden 58 
Fig 36. Spatial arrangement-Existing-House-B 59 
Fig 37. Furniture arrangement- Living Room 60 
Fig 38. Compacted furniture arrangement 60 
Fig 39. Furniture arrangement-Bed P.oom 61 
Fig 40. Territorial demarcation through furniture 61 
Fig 41. Hidden dining area 62 
Fig 42. Solution for the drying clothes-Singapore 63 
Fig 43. Spatial arrangement -Given - Fourth floor level -House C 65 
Fig 44. Spatial arrangement-Existing-House-C 65 
Fig 4 5 . Furniture arrangement- Liv ing R o o m 6 6 
Fig 4 6 . Out door l iv ing area 67 
Fig 47 . B e d r o o m expresses the privacy needs 67 
Fig 4 8 . N e e d o f separation with the same spec ies 67 
Fig 49 . Spatial arrangement -Exi s t ing-House -D 6 9 
Fig 50 . S impl i s t ic Liv ing room 70 
Fig 5 1 . Extroverted l iv ing room 70 
Fig 52 . Hidden personal space 70 
Fig 53 . Dis tance be tween the ground and eighth floor 71 
Fig 54 . Interaction be tween ground and eighth floor 71 
Fig 55 . Spatial arrangement - G i v e n - e ighth floor level - H o u s e E 73 
Fig 56. Obstructions to the visual contacts 73 
Fig 57. Interaction with others in ground level 75 
Fig 58. Spatial arrangement-Exis t ing-House-E 74 
Fig 59. Extroverted l iv ing room 74 
Fig 60 . Furniture arrangement-Bed R o o m 75 
Fig 6 1 . Spatial arrangement-Exis t ing-House-F 77 
Fig 62 . Furniture arrangement - L i v i n g room 78 
Fig 6 3 . Lack o f space in l iv ing room 78 
Fig 64 . Furniture arrangement-Bed room 78 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
This dissertation w o u l d not have been succes s the without the guidance kind co-operat ion 
and ass istance g iven by the fo l l owing for w h o m this author is very much grateful. 
I w i s h to a c k n o w l e d g e first with gratitude Prof. Nimal D e Si lva, Department o f 
Architecture for g iv ing necessary nourishment and for his advice , cont inuous guidance 
and vo luble c o m m e n t made through out the course. 
I a c k n o w l e d g e also to Acht. Vidura Sri N a m m u n i , senior lecturer, Department o f 
Architecture Dr. Samittha Manawadu. senior lecturer, Department o f Architecture for 
their tutorial adv ice and encouragement g iven through out the course. 
Acht Ravin Gunaratne, lecturer, Department o f Architecture. Planner K.D. Fernando. 
Department o f town an Country Planning for their valuable guidance , encouragement and 
construct ive crit icism. 
TI w o u l d like to express m y dedt and gratitude to the Kithmini and many c o l l e a g u e s and 
friends w h o have helped m e in d i scuss ions , correspondence and m a n y other w a y s . 
1 w o u l d wholeheart ly thank to Maduka. Asanthi ,Ni luka ,Nadeesha , Ratnamalla, 
Champaka, Dandeniya and D a m m i k a for their support bringing out o f this work. 
I am deep ly indebted to m y brothers w h o are support m e to comple te this work. Last but 
not least m y greatest gratitude is g iven m y mother w h o support m e a lways in every 
struggle. 
A B S T R A C T 
Personal space is intangible, invisible space bubble around the individual, which 
emotionally charged zone to demarcate the individual territory. Within that space he 
can perform his personal desires and activities comfortably and effectively. 
When the person exists in the large intangible and in measurable space he tries to 
demarcate his personal space to maintain his activities comfortably, by creating 
personal environment around him. Such personal environment physically express as a 
spatial enclosure and according to the psychological needs o f the person and it can be 
natural or man made. With that spatial enclosure person is separated from the outside 
forces and he is psychologically attached to such place while enhancing feeling of 
'home' place. Most o f the items this demarcations are man made, because person can 
express his personal territory as properly and dominantly such way in the physical 
setting this personal space and spatial enclosure vaiy from person to person and 
activity to activity according to the psychological needs o f such person. 
'Home' is the profound centre of human existence within fulfillment of the physical 
and psychological needs, in that spatial enclosure. Further it is a transformation of the 
personal space - emotionally charged space bubble - to the physical fabric as 
symbolic way through architecture. 
With the gradual process of the civilization the physical order and nature o f the 
'Home' transformed community living to the individual living as a extroverted to the 
introverted. During this process urbanization process started with the industrial 
revolution and as a result o f that housing problem are is in the urban sector. As a 
solution for that multistory apartments immerge, but there are several problems can be 
seen because o f the lack of physiological needs. Most important problem of the 
multistory apartment is isolation o f the people due to the less interaction within the 
verticality. The degree of the isolation increase and they are more personalized. 
Concept o f personal space related with the psychological needs o f the human being 
such as privacy, security, and identity, place making process o f the home also related 
with such attributes. A s a result o f the minimal interaction with the ground level in th 
vi 
vrtical living such attributes vary gradually from the ground level up to upper floor 
levels. Hence making o f home relation to that. Because 'concept o f home' refers as 
'Place which provides physical and psychological needs to the dwellers. So due to the 
security and diminishing level of interaction, which is the psychological needs o f the 
human being physical nature and order to the concept of home, will vary according to 
the level change because o f the isolation in the vertical living. 
Thus the hypothesis o f ' D i m e n s i o n s of concept of home and its adaptations are varied 
according to the level change because of the isolation that formulated and then it has 
been examined it's validity. 
At the end o f the study established there is a co -relationship between the level 
change and the personal space. Then understand the spatial quality o f the multistory 
apartments within certain levels. 
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