ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Built Environ.
Sec. Urban Science
This article is part of the Research TopicExtended Mind for the Design of Human EnvironmentView all 20 articles
Emotive cities: Understanding Human Perception of Urban Spaces – A Pilot study
Provisionally accepted
Lakshmi Manohar*
Chithra Kurukkanari- National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kozhikode, India
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Abstract: Neurourbanism offers new ways to understand how urban environments shape human cognition and emotion, yet empirical studies in rapidly urbanizing regions like South India remain scarce. This pilot study investigates how diverse urban settings in Calicut, Kerala, influence neurophysiological states using mobile EEG technology. Participants navigated urban spaces varying in street enclosure, natural features, and activity levels, with EEG readings analyzed for emotional states including excitement, engagement, interest, relaxation, and stress. Results show significant shifts in these metrics as environments transitioned from busy to calm, narrow to wide, urban to green, and crowded to less occupied. This study is the first to apply mobile EEG in a South Indian context, highlighting the potential for evidence-based urban design to enhance mental well-being. Findings underscore the importance of integrating green spaces, optimizing street scale, and promoting walkability in urban planning, with implications for policy and design practice in developing cities.
Keywords: Emotions, HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, neurourbanism, South India, urban design
Received: 26 Sep 2025; Accepted: 19 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Manohar and Kurukkanari. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Lakshmi Manohar
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