Fragments of frictions: A route to spatial manoeuvres for uplifting wellbeing in school environments

Abstract

In the context of design for human flourishing (DfHF), this paper reports on a two- week research-by-design-and-built project by master students in (interior) ar- chitecture. A cocktail of qualitative research experiments was executed to function as a seismograph that registered fragments of frictions in the wellbeing of K-8 pupils. This particular study firstly explains how the research cocktail was designed, based on the ethnographic, participatory and immersive methods infused by the theoretical guidelines of DfHF theory, and secondly seeks to reveal how an analysis of the well- being related results from the experiment cocktail can lead to a novel type of design problem statement and thus design brief, defined by a richer understanding of the link between human flourishing and the spatial surroundings of school children. Next, the paper illustrates its merit by reporting on the design realization following the re-search. The paper concludes by stating the values for wellbeing theory, architectural practice and school designs.