TY  - BOOK
AU  - Saeidi,Soudeh
AU  - Başar,Sevil Aydınlık
TI  - THE ROLE OF SEMI-OPEN SPACES IN HOUSING DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN TEHRAN, IRAN
PY  - 2023///
KW  - Architecture
KW  - Dissertations, Academic
N1  - Thesis (MArch) - Cyprus International University. Institute of Graduate Studies and Research Architecture Department; Includes References (sheets 96-104)
N2  - ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic brought about extraordinary challenges worldwide, 
significantly impacting the housing and built environment Housing has become crucial 
in terms of controlling the pandemic and as an environment that must meet the 
fundamental needs of residents during the quarantine period. Furthermore, the 
coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has aroused global health concerns. As a result, 
house quarantine was offered as an approach to limit the pandemic and allow a chance 
to regulate the situation; Nevertheless, it is observed that quarantining has negative 
impacts depending on space characteristics, flexibility, and user behavior. In 
particular, open and semi-open spaces in housing have gained significant importance 
during this period for offering a range of physical, mental, social, and economic 
benefits.
This study examines the role of semi-open spaces in housing during the pandemic, 
with a special focus on Tehran, Iran. Tehran's unique architectural and cultural 
features, combined with its densely populated urban environment, offered a distinct 
environment for investigating the importance of semi-open spaces during this global 
health crisis. In contrast to resent middle-class Iranian high-density traditional 
development housing, living by the courtyard cultural principle has a considerable 
influence on the layout of Iranian traditional housing. The courtyard has been turned 
into vertically open/semi-open (balcony) areas as multi-family complexes have 
become one of the most common styles of housing in contemporary Iranian big cities
such as Tehran. In traditional Iranian architecture, horizontal semi-open (courtyard) 
space has an essential cultural and unique value that plays a specific function in users' 
living styles and urbanism in hot and humid climatic regions.
In this study, the aim is to understand how semi-open spaces in housing influenced the 
well-being and social interactions of Tehran's residents during the pandemic. This 
study utilizes a mixed-methods approach, combining surveys, interviews, and 
architectural analysis to assess user satisfaction regarding the lockdown restrictions 
and expectations of semi-open spaces by taking the type (horizontal and vertical) into 
account during the quarantine period. Therefore, considering the housing type, indoor 
spaces, semi-open spaces, environmental factors, function, and activities within the 
limitation of Iranian residential spaces socio-cultural, environmental, and 
psychological factors were investigated through semi-open spaces in Iranian houses.
Accordingly, the role of semi-open spaces in Tehran houses during the COVID-19 
pandemic shows how cultural and architectural elements can play an important role in 
shaping the well-being of urban residents during the pandemic crisis.
Keywords: Architectural Psychology, Covid-19 Pandemic, Housing, Semi-Open 
Spaces Iran
ER  -