This Special Issue on Healing Spaces includes eight articles consisting of studies at the interface between design and health. The articles address some of the latest findings using state-of-the-art technologies, important outcomes for human health and wellbeing, and suggest exciting directions for the future of this research field.

This book reveals how subjective and objective data gathered by innovative methods of measurement give us the ability to quantify stress, health, performance, and wellbeing outcomes in different built environments. Design interventions informed by these measures, along with innovative integrated building materials, can shape the character of built environments for better health, productivity, and performance. These measures can help employers and managers calculate the return on investment (ROI) of various design interventions. Areas of inquiry in health and the built environment are discussed in three parts: Part 1 – Fundamentals: Human, Environment, and Material Measures for Health and Wellbeing; Part 2 – Methods: Measurement Techniques, Tools, and Methods for Health and Wellbeing; and Part 3 – Applications: Case Studies and Future Directions. The rapid pace of technical innovation and entrepreneurship by interdisciplinary research teams in health and the built environment has created a need for more publications such as this book, which discuss latest tools and methods of measuring the effects of the built environment on human physiology and psychology. Emerging tools and techniques are introduced for this field of built environment design, including virtual reality immersive environments and fisheye lens photograph simulations for human wellbeing impact measures integral to the design process. The potentials and limitations of bio‑responsive material systems and integrated sensing devices with wearable technologies linked to the Internet of Things are discussed in relation to human wellbeing performance improvements. The book provides both the foundational knowledge and fundamentals for characterizing human health and wellbeing in the built environment as well as emerging trends and design research methods for innovations in this field. It will be of interest to researchers, educators, and students of architecture, interior design, and integrative medicine, as well as professionals working in health and the built environment. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

A basic overview of human health and wellbeing aspects, including physiological, neurological, behavioral, psychological, and kinesthesiological, is discussed. Indicators of human wellbeing characteristics are presented, such as respiratory, sweat, heart rate variability, sleep, and movement measures. Human senses and phenomenological experience are discussed in relation to the health and wellbeing measures. This initial chapter covers the necessary foundational understanding of human health and wellbeing measures required for design considerations in built environments. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

The built environment is characterized by the materials that comprise its spatial configurations. There are numerous materials utilized in building construction, which may vary depending upon the regional resources and methods or depending upon the building program needs. This chapter introduces the major material groups based on chemistry and physical characteristics including natural materials, nontechnical ceramics, technical ceramics, polymers and elastomers, foams, and composites. The influence of material extraction, manufacturing, and compositions on environmental health is presented. The materials in our built environment also have a subtle but profound effect on human senses and perception. The phenomenological effects of sight, sound, smell, and touch are directly influenced by the material conditions of built environment spaces (spatio-material configurations). This chapter introduces the scientific evidence for how materials impact human sensing and perception. Visual impacts of materials include beauty, light, and neurological response. Odorous impacts of materials influence air quality in the built environment. Acoustic impacts of materials address noise, vibrations, and sound stimuli. Finally, the haptic impacts of materials are characterized by thermal experience and ergonomics. While phenomenology of materials in design is a well-established concept, this chapter presents recent research findings specific to the impacts on human wellbeing. Emerging materials in building applications that provide unique characteristics to enable environmental response and temporal change dependent upon dynamic conditions are introduced. Responsive materials may be triggered by changes in light, sound, heat, chemistry, or moisture. The information in this chapter provides the overview fundamentals for understanding the chemistry and characteristics of materials and why it is necessary to reframe the selection of materials for building design through consideration of human health measures. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

The range of environmental factors influencing built environment conditions are presented in this chapter. These include air quality, light, acoustic, thermal and spatio-material measures. Each of these variables has a profound influence on the human experience and thus human health and wellbeing. In some cases, these environmental variables present stressors to humans, while, in other cases, the environment can aid and support human healing and wellbeing. Various types of built environment conditions are represented and discussed with reference to specific case studies (described in detail in Chapter 3.1). The chapter provides a comprehensive overview of environmental fundamentals necessary to inform health and wellbeing performance. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

The tools and technologies that are necessary for the sensing data collection aspects for human, environment, and material measures are presented in this chapter. Current state-of-the-art noninvasive, wearable biosensor devices alongside embedded material sensors and environmental sensor packages now give us the means to quantify stress, health, and wellness outcomes in different built environments. Expanded measurement technologies include neurosensing to inform the brain science of built environment impact and microbial sensing to help characterize the microbiome. Tools used for other apsects of human health and wellbeing research for built environments are presented. These include virtual reality headsets, life cycle analysis calculation tools, fisheye lens photography tools, and machine learning algorithms. Each of these tools and technologies is enabling new ways of considering the impacts of built environment design on human health and wellbeing. These technologies are ever-changing in a rapidly advancing field, so the general necessity for considering appropriate modes of measurement (sensing, simulation, calculation, survey, photograph, etc.) is provided. In addition, the authors address the fundamental science and knowledge for how these sensing technologies and measurement tools function in application. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->