corpus / browse / evidence strength
Evidence strength · 64 records
High
Replicated human evidence, strong meta-analysis, robust systematic review, or well-controlled built-environment experiment
how to use it:Design implication may be stated with confidence appropriate to the exposure and population studied
ND-0001 · 2021 · Systematic review
How indoor environmental quality affects occupants' cognitive functions: A systematic review
Wang et al. Building and Environment
Poorer indoor conditions were often associated with poorer cognitive performance, but effects varied by factor, task and study design.
ND-0002 · 2026 · Systematic review
Indoor environmental quality and the brain: A systematic review of physiological and neural evidence
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Visual and thermal conditions showed the most consistent relationships with neural and physiological signals across the reviewed evidence.
ND-0003 · 2023 · Systematic review and meta-analysis
Short-term exposure to indoor carbon dioxide and cognitive task performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Short-term CO2 exposures below 5000 ppm were associated with cognitive effects in the pooled literature, with complex tasks appearing more sensitive.
ND-0006 · 2017 · Review
Ten questions concerning thermal and indoor air quality effects on the performance of office work and schoolwork
Wargocki & Wyon. Building and Environment
Synthesizes evidence that temperature and air quality can influence work and school performance, with effects dependent on task and exposure.
ND-0009 · 2021 · Meta-analysis
Meta-analysis of 35 studies examining the effect of indoor temperature on office work performance
Porras-Salazar et al. Building and Environment
The pooled evidence did not support a simple robust universal relationship between temperature and office work performance.
ND-0010 · 2025 · Meta-analysis
The effects of temperature on work performance in the typical office environment: A meta-analysis of current evidence
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Temperatures above about 25 °C tended to worsen accuracy or response time in some conditions, especially longer exposures and skilled tasks; moderately cooler conditions were less consistently harmful.
ND-0011 · 2019 · Review
Effects of moderate thermal environments on cognitive performance: A multidisciplinary review
Authors per journal record. Applied Energy
The review supports nonlinear relationships between thermal conditions and cognitive performance rather than a simple monotonic effect.
ND-0012 · 2018 · Review
A review of the environmental parameters necessary for an optimal sleep environment
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Noise, temperature, light and air quality each have plausible and documented effects on sleep quality and continuity.
ND-0013 · 2012 · Review
Effects of thermal environment on sleep and circadian rhythm
Okamoto-Mizuno & Mizuno. Journal of Physiological Anthropology
Heat and cold exposures can increase wakefulness and reduce REM or slow-wave sleep, with thermoregulation tightly coupled to sleep.
ND-0014 · 2017 · Review
Thermal environment and sleep quality: A review
Lan, Tsuzuki, Liu & Lian. Energy and Buildings
Moderate heat or cold can reduce sleep quality; control of the bed micro-environment may offer a lower-energy route to comfort.
ND-0015 · 2024 · Review
Optimizing bedroom thermal environment: A review of human body temperature, sleeping thermal comfort and sleep quality
Authors per journal record. Energy and Built Environment
Body-temperature distribution provides a useful bridge between thermal comfort and sleep quality, which are related but not interchangeable.
ND-0016 · 2025 · Review
How do we create a healthier thermal environment for sleep? A review of sleep thermal comfort and sleep quality
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Thermal needs vary between and within people; pre-sleep adjustment alone may not meet overnight sleep and comfort needs.
ND-0020 · 2005 · Review
Auditory distraction from low-intensity noise: a review of the consequences for learning and workplace environments
C. P. Beaman. Applied Cognitive Psychology
Low-intensity sound can impair serial recall and other tasks even when it is not subjectively loud.
ND-0021 · 2020 · Meta-analysis / synthesis
The relation between intelligibility of irrelevant speech and cognitive performance: a revised model
Haapakangas et al. Indoor Air
Performance declines became more likely as irrelevant speech became more intelligible; verbal short-term memory was especially sensitive.
ND-0023 · 2021 · Meta-analysis
A synthesis of health benefits of natural sounds and their distribution in national parks
Buxton et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Natural sounds were associated with improved affect and health-related outcomes and reduced stress or annoyance across the synthesized literature.
ND-0024 · 2024 · Systematic review and meta-analysis
Effects of natural sound exposure on health recovery: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors per journal record. Science of the Total Environment
The pooled evidence supports health-recovery benefits from exposure to natural sounds, while effect sizes vary by outcome and stimulus.
ND-0025 · 2022 · Review
Classroom acoustics and cognition: review of the effects of noise and reverberation on primary school children
Mealings. Building Acoustics
Noise and reverberation can impair speech perception, memory, attention and learning, with children especially vulnerable.
ND-0026 · 2022 · Review
Acoustical parameters for learning in classroom: A review
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Classroom acoustic parameters are linked to speech intelligibility and learning-relevant outcomes.
ND-0028 · 2016 · Systematic review
Attention Restoration Theory: A systematic review of the attention restoration potential of exposure to natural environments
Ohly et al. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B
Some measures of attention improved after nature exposure, but findings varied substantially by test and study design.
ND-0029 · 2018 · Systematic review and meta-analysis
Attention Restoration Theory II: systematic review of attention processes affected by exposure to natural environments
Stevenson et al. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B
Nature exposure showed small-to-moderate benefits for several executive-attention outcomes, with stronger signals for some measures and settings.
ND-0033 · 2022 · Systematic review and meta-analysis
Effects of Indoor Plants on Human Functions: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analyses
Han, Ruan & Liao. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
The review generally favored plant presence for objective human-function outcomes, with significant pooled effects for some outcomes but limited studies per meta-analysis.
ND-0034 · 2020 · Systematic review
A systematic review and conceptual framework of biophilic design parameters in clinical environments
Authors per journal record. Healthcare / built environment literature
Different user groups appeared to value different biophilic parameters, including daylight, views, natural content, refuge and environmental comfort.
ND-0035 · 2024 · Systematic review
Biophilic design in healthcare: a systematic review of health and wellbeing outcomes
Al Khatib, Samara & Ndiaye. Frontiers in Built Environment
The review links biophilic interventions with reduced stress, anxiety and pain and with some recovery-related outcomes, while evidence strength varies.
ND-0036 · 2025 · Systematic review / bibliometric review
Biophilic Design in the Built Environment: Trends, Gaps and Future Directions
Authors per journal record. Buildings
Maps a rapidly growing biophilic-design literature and identifies uneven evidence across interventions and outcomes.
ND-0037 · 2019 · Review
Effects of light on human circadian rhythms, sleep and mood
Blume, Garbazza & Spitschan. Somnologie
Light timing, spectrum and intensity can alter circadian rhythms, sleep and mood through retinal pathways beyond image-forming vision.
ND-0041 · 2022 · Scoping review
Implications of neuroarchitecture for the experience of the built environment: a scoping review
Lee et al. Architectural Engineering and Design Management
The field is promising but small, methodologically diverse and concentrated in selected environmental attributes.
ND-0042 · 2026 · Systematic review
A comprehensive review of neuroarchitecture measurement tools and methods
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
EEG dominates the field; affect is studied more often than cognition or decision-making; multimodal standardization remains limited.
ND-0043 · 2026 · Systematic mapping review
Toward Evidence-Based Neuroarchitecture: A Systematic Mapping and Framework for Immersive Spatial Cognition
Authors per journal record. Frontiers in Psychology
Maps the human empirical field and shows frequent reliance on questionnaires, behavior and EEG, with lower use of HRV, fMRI and fNIRS.
ND-0044 · 2021 · Systematic review
The Cognitive-Emotional Design and Study of Architectural Space: A Scoping Review of Neuroarchitecture and Its Precursor Approaches
Higuera-Trujillo, Llinares & Macagno. Sensors
Synthesizes neuroarchitecture with earlier environmental-psychology and psychophysiology approaches.
ND-0045 · 2020 · Systematic review
Exploring the influence of the built environment on human experience through a neuroscience approach: A systematic review
Authors per journal record. Frontiers of Architectural Research
The review identified growing use of neuroscience methods but substantial gaps in sample size, ecological validity and reproducibility.
ND-0047 · 2023 · Systematic review
Exploring Methodological Approaches of Experimental Studies in the Field of Neuroarchitecture: A Systematic Review
Naghibi Rad et al. HERD
Reviews 28 experimental studies and documents recurring methodological choices and weaknesses.
ND-0048 · 2024 · Systematic review
Virtual reality and electroencephalography in architectural design: A systematic review of empirical studies
Taherysayah, Malathouni, Liang & Westermann. Journal of Building Engineering
All reviewed studies reported environmental effects on some physiological, psychological or cognitive measures, but methods were too diverse for specific universal design rules.
ND-0058 · 2016 · Meta-analysis
Evidence for prospect-refuge theory: a meta-analysis of the findings of environmental preference research
Authors per journal record. City, Territory and Architecture
Prospect received more consistent support than refuge in interior and urban studies; evidence for complexity was mixed but often positive; mystery was less consistently supported.
ND-0059 · 2004 · Meta-analysis
Mystery, complexity, legibility and coherence: A meta-analysis
Authors per journal record. Journal of Environmental Psychology
Across the literature, relationships between preference and classic information variables were heterogeneous and often not reproducible.
ND-0062 · 2015 · Experimental neuroscience study
Grid cell symmetry is shaped by environmental geometry
Krupic et al. Nature
Grid-cell firing patterns were distorted by environmental geometry, showing that spatial coding is shaped by enclosure boundaries rather than being perfectly metric.
ND-0064 · 2005 · Foundational neurophysiology paper
Microstructure of a spatial map in the entorhinal cortex
Hafting et al. Nature
Identified grid cells with periodic spatial firing patterns in entorhinal cortex.
ND-0065 · 2010 · Human neuroimaging study
Evidence for grid cells in a human memory network
Doeller, Barry & Burgess. Nature
Human entorhinal signals showed six-fold directional modulation consistent with grid-cell-like coding.
ND-0067 · 2017 · Experimental eye-tracking study
Meaning-based guidance of attention in scenes as revealed by meaning maps
Henderson & Hayes. Nature Human Behaviour
Meaning maps predicted where people looked in scenes beyond low-level image salience.
ND-0068 · 2018 · Experimental eye-tracking study
Meaning guides attention in real-world scene images: Evidence from eye movements and meaning maps
Henderson & Hayes. Journal of Vision
Semantic meaning accounted for gaze behavior in scene viewing beyond image-salience models.
ND-0069 · 2019 · Review
Meaning and Attentional Guidance in Scenes: A Review of the Meaning Map Approach
Authors per journal record. Vision
Reviews evidence that scene meaning is a major determinant of visual attention.
ND-0070 · 2019 · Review
Reading scenes: how scene grammar guides attention and aids perception in real-world environments
Võ et al. Current Opinion in Psychology
Objects are processed faster when they appear in expected semantic and spatial relationships, and violations attract attention.
ND-0072 · 2021 · Systematic review
A Comparison of Psychological and Work Outcomes in Open-Plan and Cellular Office Designs: A Systematic Review
James, Delfabbro & King. SAGE Open
Open-plan offices were more often associated with poorer health, satisfaction and productivity-related outcomes, with noise and privacy recurring as major issues.
ND-0073 · 2005 · Systematic review
The effect of office concepts on worker health and performance: a systematic review of the literature
de Croon et al. Ergonomics / Occupational literature
Strong evidence linked open workplaces with reduced privacy and job satisfaction; limited evidence linked openness and close workstation distance with higher cognitive workload.
ND-0075 · 2023 · Systematic review
Association between perceived indoor environmental characteristics and occupants' mental well-being, cognitive performance, productivity, satisfaction in workplaces
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Indoor climate, space/furniture/privacy and naturalness had the strongest evidence links to wellbeing, productivity and satisfaction; cognitive-performance evidence was less consistent.
ND-0076 · 2021 · Systematic review
Office spatial design attributes, sitting, and face-to-face interactions: Systematic review and research agenda
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Greater worker visibility was associated with shorter sitting bouts, and proximity was associated with more or longer face-to-face interactions.
ND-0077 · 2008 · Systematic review
A Review of the Research Literature on Evidence-Based Healthcare Design
Ulrich et al. HERD
The review found design-relevant evidence across infection control, acoustics, nature/daylight, ergonomics, room type and layout, while quality varied by topic.
ND-0078 · 2007 · Literature review
Do patients in hospitals benefit from single rooms? A literature review
Authors per journal record. Health Policy
Single rooms showed moderate benefits for satisfaction, sleep/noise and privacy/dignity; infection evidence was conflicting and recovery evidence limited.
ND-0079 · 2018 · Systematic review
Single-Occupancy Patient Rooms: A Systematic Review of the Literature Since 2006
Taylor, Card & Piatkowski. HERD
Most studies reported at least some advantages of single rooms, with stronger evidence for communication, infection control, noise/sleep and preference, but trade-offs remained.
ND-0080 · 2023 · Systematic review and narrative synthesis
Clinical, humanistic and economic outcomes associated with single rooms compared with shared accommodation for acute hospital admissions
Authors per BMJ Open record. BMJ Open
Patients often preferred single rooms for privacy and shared rooms for social interaction; sleep perceptions often favored single rooms while objective noise differences were less consistent.
ND-0081 · 2026 · Systematic review
Psychophysiological responses to indoor wood use: A systematic literature review of indicators, methods, and research trends
Authors per journal record. Building and Environment
Visual wood exposure is the most studied modality, with heart rate and prefrontal measures common; the field needs longer exposures and more diverse samples.
ND-0082 · 2026 · Systematic review
Effect of Wood Indoor Environments on Human Psychophysiological Responses and Evaluation Indicators: A Review
Authors per journal record. Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
Across 24 selected experiments, wood exposure generally tended toward more favorable psychological and physiological responses.
ND-0086 · 1996 · Review
Odor memory: Review and analysis
Herz & Engen. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
Olfactory memory has distinctive associative characteristics and can evoke strong memories even though it does not form a wholly separate memory system.
ND-0093 · 2025 · Experimental neuroscience study
Norepinephrine-mediated slow vasomotion drives glymphatic clearance during sleep
Hauglund et al. Cell
Synchronized norepinephrine and vascular oscillations were linked to glymphatic CSF flow during NREM sleep; zolpidem dampened key dynamics.
ND-0095 · 2012 · Foundational animal study
A Paravascular Pathway Facilitates CSF Flow Through the Brain Parenchyma and the Clearance of Interstitial Solutes, Including Amyloid beta
Iliff et al. Science Translational Medicine
Established a paravascular pathway supporting exchange of CSF with interstitial fluid and clearance of solutes.
ND-0105 · 2026 · Systematic review
The effects of interior design on users' psychological health under isolated, confined, and extreme environments: A systematic review
Authors per journal record. Journal of Environmental Psychology
Identifies recurring interior-design elements associated with psychological outcomes under unusually constrained conditions.
ND-0106 · 2021 · Review
The neuroaesthetics of architectural spaces
Chatterjee, Coburn & Weinberger. Cognitive Processing
Synthesizes how architectural spaces may engage sensory-motor, emotion-valuation and meaning-knowledge systems.
ND-0109 · 2026 · Systematic review
Neuroscience-informed approaches in architectural design: a systematic review of cognitive measures and interactive technologies from an HCI perspective
Authors per journal record. Frontiers in Computer Science
Maps how cognitive measures and interactive technologies are being used to inform architectural design.
ND-0110 · 2026 · Systematic review
A review of biophilic architectural design strategies on psychological and physiological health
Authors per journal record. Discover Environment
Synthesizes a large multidisciplinary evidence base spanning empirical studies, theory, cases and meta-analyses.
ND-0111 · 2022 · Critical review
Biophilic design in architecture and its contributions to health, well-being, and sustainability: A critical review
Authors per journal record. Frontiers of Architectural Research
Reviews proposed health and wellbeing benefits of biophilic architecture while examining gaps in evidence and application.
ND-0112 · 2022 · Review
A theory of geometry representations for spatial navigation
Authors per journal record. Progress in Neurobiology
Synthesizes how the brain may represent environmental geometry for navigation across several coding systems.
ND-0113 · 2012 · Review
From Objects to Landmarks: The Function of Visual Location Information in Spatial Navigation
Authors per journal record. Frontiers in Psychology
Landmarks support navigation through both identity and positional information, with effectiveness depending on route and decision context.
ND-0114 · 2026 · Review
(Remembering) Vector Coding of Boundaries and Objects in the Subiculum
Colin Lever. Hippocampus
Reviews vector coding of environmental boundaries and objects in hippocampal-related systems.
ND-0120 · 2022 · Systematic literature review
Methodological considerations in the open-plan office paradox
Authors per journal record. Work
Findings on open-plan outcomes depend partly on which variables and methods researchers choose, explaining some apparent contradictions.
ND-0121 · 2023 · Systematic review
The effects of activity-based workplaces on contributors to organizational productivity
Authors per journal record. Journal of Environmental Psychology
Activity-based workplaces can support some productivity contributors but focus and task-space fit remain recurring challenges.