IN-PERSON Manchester Livable Cities
Abstract
Nowadays, environmental psychology is improving urban public spaces by strengthening the bond between humans and their surroundings, which makes them more inclusive, sustainable, and well-being-enhancing. However, engineering professionals’ design priorities often conflict with residents’ psychological needs. This study investigates government and private sector engineers’ perspectives on four park design criteria — flexibility, quality, accessibility, and diversity — in Erbil City, Iraq, comparing them with residents’ Attention Restoration Theory (ART)-based psychological needs and assessing both groups’ emotional responses to co-creation participation. A 7-point Likert scale survey was presented to 107 engineers and a similar survey to 202 residents. The results were analyzed using MANOVA, Friedman ranking tests, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). MANOVA indicated no statistically significant variance between engineers in the government and private sector. Friedman tests indicated that government engineers put flexibility first (MR = 2.74) while private engineers put accessibility first (MR = 2.61). Both groups ordered diversity last, which shows that the professional context affects design cognition. Comparison with ART findings revealed two critical rank inversions: engineers overall ranked quality first while residents ranked its ART equivalent last, and engineers ranked diversity last while residents ranked it second. Emotional response analysis demonstrated overwhelming co-creation acceptance in both groups. These findings reveal a fundamental designer-user gap in designing urban public spaces which are most critical for psychological restoration. The positive emotional reception of co-creation from both groups provides compelling evidence for participatory design as the primary mechanism for bridging this gap and aligning engineering practice with residents’ psychological needs in rapidly urbanizing contexts.
Sweyda A. Azeez received her B.Sc. in Architectural Design from the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering, Salahaddin University-Erbil, in 2012. She went on to earn her M.Sc. in architectural design in 2017, with a thesis focusing on adaptability in office space layout through the examination of buildings’ layers, also from Salahaddin University-Erbil. She subsequently completed her Ph.D. in 2023 from the same institution, with a general specialization in architectural design and a specific specialization in design studies. She currently holds a researcher and lectureship position
Zenab K. Majid is an Architect/Designer and Lecturer at the Architecture Department of Salahaddin University-Erbil. She has obtained her Bachelors degree in Architecture in 2009 and her Masters degree in Design at Northumbria Univeristy (UK) in 2013. A diploma in Archeology from University of Reading in 2015. She has broad experience in the design industry, combined with a strong solid base in academia. Having a background in architecture has made her excellent at juggling multiple tasks and working under pressure with 14 years of experience. As a lecturer/Designer; she strives hard to understand the needs of her students and clients and to be able to come up with designs that inspire as well. She works with the principles of space planning and psychological aspects to create well considered spaces that allow people to truly relax in them. Having worked within the industry over the years has allowed her to have a broad spectrum view on how her designs can impact on others.
9:00 am - 10:30 am
Thursday 18th June, 2026