BIOPHILIC INTERVENTIONS IN GREEN ARCHITECTURE: DESIGN PROFESSIONALS' PERCEPTIONS ON ENHANCING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING THROUGH INDOOR PLANT LANDSCAPES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v24i44.2258Keywords:
biophilic design, indoor plant landscapes, design professionals, cognition–practice gap, PLS-SEM, indoor environmental quality, post-occupancy evaluationAbstract
Indoor plant landscapes are an established strategy in biophilic design, yet their integration can reveal a divergence between aesthetic appreciation and technical implementation. Grounded in environmental psychology and the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework, this cross-sectional study examined design professionals’ perceptions of the aesthetic, functional and well-being dimensions of indoor greenery. A multi-stage sampling approach yielded 185 valid responses from design professionals across major metropolitan regions in Malaysia. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to examine structural associations and the moderating role of professional experience. Respondents rated aesthetics (M = 4.35) and perceived well-being (M = 4.28) more highly than physical environmental functions (M = 3.12) and integration strategies (M = 2.85). Aesthetic cognition was not significantly associated with integration strategies (β = 0.118, p = 0.150), whereas functional cognition showed a positive association (β = 0.462, p < 0.001). Professional experience had a positive moderating effect (β = 0.208, p = 0.005). These findings inform a lifecycle framework encompassing evidence-based design briefs, maintenance governance, indoor environmental quality monitoring and post-occupancy evaluation. The results concern professional perceptions and reported practices rather than measured pollutant removal, occupant health effects or energy savings.
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