An isovist, or viewshed, is the area in a spatial environment directly visible from a location within the space. Here we show how a set of isovists can be used to generate a graph of mutual visibility between locations. We demonstrate that this graph can also be constructed without reference to isovists and that we are in fact invoking the more general concept of a visibility graph. Using the visibility graph, we can extend both isovist and current graph-based analyses of architectural space to form a new methodology for the investigation of configurational relationships. The measurement of local and global characteristics of the graph, for each vertex or for the system as a whole, is of interest from an architectural perspective, allowing us to describe a configuration with reference to accessibility and visibility, to compare from location to location within a system, and to compare systems with different geometries. Finally we show that visibility graph properties may be closely related to manifestations of spatial perception, such as way-finding, movement, and space use.

As the pace of organisational change accelerates and as new technologies demand more rapid responses from organisations to changing conditions in their business environment, buildings are being called on to play an active role in helping to generate new organisational structures and in facilitating individual communication. This raises questions not only of the nature of organisational structure and of how communication technologies will affect that, but also of the possible mechanisms by which spatial structure can affect patterns of interaction in the work organisation. In this paper we will review two recent research-led design projects in which space syntax techniques were used to help define the building brief for an organisation which depends for its market lead on its ability to innovate. Building on research into the design of research laboratories, we found that patterns of space use and movement generated by spatial configuration have a direct impact on the frequency of contact between workers in office-based organisations. The frequency of contact is shown in turn to have an impact on work-related communications cited as ‘useful’ by questionnaire. These patterns are found to be ‘system effects’ in that they cannot be attributed to an individual worker's desk location but appear to result from the configuration of the whole system of spaces through which people move in their daily work, and have detectable effects on the mean ‘usefulness’ to others of all workers in a part of a building. The analysis suggests, however, that spatial integration alone may be insufficient to support flexible working and that spatial differentiation is necessary to provide the range of environments needed by different types of work activity.

This paper examines the 19th century Jewish immigrant quarters of Manchester and Leeds. It uses original census data to look at the entire population of the two areas of initial settlement. Analysis of family and kin structure, occupations of head of household, country of origin and length of time in the country as well as analysis of the settlement patterns at the street level are combined to examine the phenomenon of immigrant clustering. It is concluded that the complex social and economic processes involved in the establishment of a new migrant community in its host society result in spatial clustering and that spatial clustering in close proximity to sources of income is critical in enabling future integration of the immigrant group.

Built structures, such as animal nests or buildings that humans occupy, serve two overarching purposes: shelter and a space where individuals interact. The former has dominated much of the discussion in the literature. But, as the study of collective behaviour expands, it is time to elucidate the role of the built environment in shaping collective outcomes. Collective behaviour in social animals emerges from interactions, and collective cognition in humans emerges from communication and coordination. These collective actions have vast economic implications in human societies and critical fitness consequences in animal systems. Despite the obvious influence of space on interactions, because spatial proximity is necessary for an interaction to occur, spatial constraints are rarely considered in studies of collective behaviour or collective cognition. An interdisciplinary exchange between behavioural ecologists, evolutionary biologists, cognitive scientists, social scientists, architects and engineers can facilitate a productive exchange of ideas, methods and theory that could lead us to uncover unifying principles and novel research approaches and questions in studies of animal and human collective behaviour. This article, along with those in this theme issue aims to formalize and catalyse this interdisciplinary exchange. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Interdisciplinary approaches for uncovering the impacts of architecture on collective behaviour’.