An education experience on representation of the legibility of National Garden by the architecture students: Recognition of affective factors on the readable image of place, based on the mental maps

Readability is an effective quality in making and recording our mental image of environment that has been regarded in psychology, architecture, urban design and other interdisciplinary sciences. The cognitionof affective factors on the readable mental image can facilitate the process of perception, mindfulness, andconsequently familiarity with the environment and result in the emotional satisfaction of environment. Therefore, the aim of this paper is identifying and understanding the affective factors on legible mentalimage in the perception process. The statistic community for this research have been chosen among the students in architecture and interior architecture master of University of Art. The place to study is the zone of their daily travels (the zone of university entrance, from the south-east side of National Garden's main entrance to the Facultyof Architecture, located in the south of university of Art). In general view this zone seems to be a legible space, but the factors affecting the perception as a readable space are questioned in this study. The research method is qualitative and experimental. First, the main criteria related to environmental readabilitywere identified in according to Kevin Lynch's theory about readability in the field of urban and environmental psychology, then sub-criteria were identified in the other researchers' theories. In the next phase, the drawncognitive maps of students were analyzed and interpreted by these criteria -physical and qualitative. Findings of the research show that the readability of students' mental maps is most affected by the edgeparameter. Also, the criteria rankings show the most impact of students from the rhythm and harmony in the districtparameter. The next rank has been the other criteria of district and edge parameters. Also, a comparative study between students in two disciplines reveals differences in the recording of readability of mental maps.