Mental Breadcrumbs — Developing biometric methods to understand how emotions and sensory cues affect wayfinding

Authors: Isa He*, Humbi Song*, Zach Seibold, Ibrahim Ibrahim, Allen Sayegh (*co-first authors)

Keywords: Interdisciplinary Design, Biometric, Wayfinding, Sensory Cues, Mental Load

Conference: SIGraDi 2022 | Critical Appropriations. November 7th-11th, 2022
XXVI International Conference of the Ibero-American Society of Digital Graphics (SIGraDi)

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Research Questions:  How do one’s emotions, mental state, and the spatial environment interact? Why are some built environments easier to navigate than others? What spatial cues do people use in wayfinding, and how is it impacted by one’s cognitive load?

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Abstract:

How do one’s emotions, mental state, and the spatial environment interact? Interdisciplinary research methods in architecture and neuroscience can be used to examine the interrelated factors of mental load, emotions, memory, and sensory cues in wayfinding. The objective is to propose a biometric methodology for quantifying the emotional and cognitive experience of wayfinding, and to present a pilot experiment on the impact of mental load on wayfinding. The methodology collected biometric (electrodermal activity, electroencephalogram, heart rate, accelerometer), visuospatial (GPS, camera), and interview data. The pilot study revealed a new category of sensory cues used by participants to wayfind. Identified as “breadcrumbs” and associated with subjective emotions, researchers propose an addition to Kevin Lynch’s elements of the built environment that contribute to cognitive mapping. The ultimate aim is to invite a rethinking of the typically precedent-based nature of spatial design, bolstering the discussion with individual experience data to encourage evidence-based design.