The effects of legibility and space hierarchy on wayfinding accuracy; the case of zorlu center shopping mall

Do we think about the cognitive processes undertaken as we move about in the environment. This daily routine, wayfinding in particular, in its smallest scale begins as we move around in our homes, and continues as we leave for work or school, as we walk through buildings, and as we return to home. During these activities, we receive environmental information, decode and process them, and recall them when necessary. Most of the time, this routine activity is an unconscious process and we tend to ignore the fact that even the simplest decisions we make to reach a destination are determined by our wayfinding ability. This ability affects us physically and psychologically as the brain and body reacts to stimuli emitted from the environment. Most of our activities take place in large-scale built environments where wayfinding becomes an important design issue. Sometimes it can be quite difficult to find our way in such settings.The characteristics of the built environment generally accepted to affect wayfinding are legebility (visual accessibility), space hierarchy, sign system and landmarks, architectural differentiation, and building plan configuration. Another factor affecting wayfinding is the degree of familiarity one has with the setting and gender. How well we know the environment that surrounds us clearly is an important factor that affects our wayfinding behaviour and the perception of the setting as well as the facilities it offers. Throughout this dissertation the terms "Legibility" and "Space Hierarchy" will be used in order to emphasise the wayfinding accuracy. Along with socio-cultural and socioeconomic changes, the lifestyle habits of the urban dweller, and therefore the consumption pattern and speed, have also changed. With all these changes, the formation of a "shopping mall" in cities began. Today, these places have become the new public spaces and living centers of the city. In cities where fast life prevails, it has become important to reach the target Most designers give wayfinding low priority, seeing it as a hindrance to good design or a problem to be solved with signage (Carpman and Grant, 2002). Understanding a few basic principles of architectural wayfinding design can help designers to enhance building performance and to provide more inclusive solutions. The main topic of the study is the built environment and human behavior in mixed-use structures. Behaviors are guided by perceptual and cognitive processes. The physical environment is the measure, if you can not find your way, psychological or physiological effects begin to occur. The main purpose of this study is to understand the effects of legibility and space hierarchy on wayfinding performance in shopping centers. It is important to understand how these concepts affects buyer's wayfinding performance yet it is not known whether they have effect on wayfinding performance or not.There are too many reserches studing affects of familiarity and gender on wayfinding process in shopping centers. On the other hand there are less researches in literature exploring the relationship between legibility and space hierarchy and wayfinding performance. The goal of this study is to contribute to the understanding of human wayfinding behaviors in complex buildings. This paper argues that different inputs/sources from environment are the primary factors shaping wayfinding behavior. There should be a positive relationship between personal and environmental factors and the legibility of the space. The research questions investigated were: 1. Which elements of a shopping center environment do effect users wayfinding behavior when they are navigating in it? 2.How does legibility and space hierarchy effect wayfinding in shopping centers? 3.How does the (visibility)built environment of a multi-story shopping center affect wayfinding? The hypothesis identifies the main issues of the wayfinding accurecy in a shopping center environment as insufficient legibility and space hierarchy. These factors will be examined by wayfinding task, structured interview related to wayfinding task and space syntax method. This study's primary focus was the case study involving Zorlu center shopping mall. The results of the case study were able to aid the researcher in answering the research questions posed in chapter 1. The first question, "which elements of a shopping center environment do effect users wayfinding behavior when they are navigating in it?" was also answered by the study. Participants relied heavily on signage, but did note that other interior elements contributed to helping them find their destination. Signs were both the most helpful and the most detracting elements analyzed by the study. Participants seemed to find the existing signage helpful, but the sign system as a whole detracted from their experience because it was lacking in some areas. Most confusion for participants came from not seeing a helpful sign or having to guess which level their assigned destination was on because they did not know. The second question, "How does legibility and space hierarchy effect wayfinding in shopping centers?" was also answered by the study. Relied to questions 11 and 12, participants had problems knowing where they are and where they are heading to. All narrow and angeld hallways in Zorlu center make it more confusing to navigate. The effects of legibility have been shown recently in the field of advertising (Chebat et al., 2003; Lowrey, 1998): low legibility demands more cognitive efforts from the reader and affects negatively the wayfinding process in built environment. The third question, "how does the built environment of a multi-story shopping center affect wayfinding?" proved to be the most important in understanding the particular wayfinding issues found in the shoping center. Participants in the wayfinding analysis study commented that the existing signs were helpful, but they needed more to tell them what was on the other levels. There are some small signs with a list of departments on each floor near stairs and elevators, but most participants did not notice them. Some participants also commented on a need for maps. On the other hand location of moving stairs and elevators seemed to be confusing.Wayfinding is an important issue in the management of shopping malls so wayfinding deserves more attention from the shopping mall managers, since it directly affects the nonmonetary costs of shopping. This study looked at five specific locations within Zorlu center shopping mall. Future studies looking to improve the shopping mall should look at other locations as well. The participant phase of the study would not necessarily need to be repeated, but Passini's notation method and structural framework could be consulted for the other locations within the building.