Valuing the familiar : a study on the relevance of familiarity in response to contemporary progress

Abstract

Recognising architectures’ complex engagement with the Self, the study aims to address the relationship with familiarity, examining its implications through philosophical discourse. People obtain familiarity through direct experiences with their surroundings, but some instances allow the Self to perceive an unvisited space as familiar. This study discusses the experience of familiarity and how it affects attachment of place, understanding how the Self determines when to allow change. Based on the literature addressed, the study makes use of a sample of three groups, observing them as they experience three different locations. The study makes use of an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, where the obtained results are interpreted to determine what is perceived as familiar and one’s level of attachment. Results uncovered three types of familiarity; actual familiarity, perceived familiarity and the unfamiliar. A detectable difference was seen in the way psychological antecedents are associated with place. The more one feels familiar to a place, the more the sense of attachment, resulting in a rejection to the notion of change. Despite this, the observations allowed the study to uncover an anomaly that allows the Self to experience familiarity through intangible memories, removing the threat that is change. The study then proposes a framework mechanism that reveals the characteristics of the familiar through the Self. This unveils the consequent tendencies instigated by what one perceives as familiar. Conclusively, the study inquiries about the meaning of the familiar in the current fast-paced and evolving environment, highlighting its relevance in architectural discourse.