Examensuppsatsen syftar på att utreda hur folk uppfattar en bostadsmiljö av en viss karaktär utifrån de konstvetenskapliga områdena arkitektur och bebyggelsemönster. En undersökning genomförs där allmänheten värderar tio områden från tre olika städer. Resultatet presenteras bland annat med hjälp av polära diagram, i diagrammet bildas en värderos, vars bild illustrerar den upplevda känslan av området. / The undergraduate thesis aims to investigate how people perceive a residential environment of a particular character based on the art of scientific fields of architecture and urban design. A survey is carried out, in which the public evaluate ten areas from three different cities. The results are presented by the use of polar diagrams, the values forms an image which illustrates the perceived sensation of the area.

The thesis called Crisis of public space and the attempts for its revitalisation is trying to analyse public space from the perspective of urban anthropology and sociology and it introduces the role of semiotics in this issue. It presents the crisis of public space and tries to uncover the causes and possible solutions. It opposes the modernistic concepts of the city which looked away from the human aspect and focuses on everyday life of people in urban space. The thesis adverts to the necessity of blending various fields which deal with the issue of public space and perceiving the city as a whole. It takes notice of the mutual relationship of space and people, of creating individual's identity and character of the society based on the environment which surrounds it and at the same time the possibility for everyone to participate in changing their surroundings, mind patterns and perception. At first, this thesis addresses the issue of the definition of public space, presents the fundamental theoretical publications dealing with its origin and crisis. Then it in detail describes the characteristics of the city, analyses the demand for good-quality space and takes notice of the tendencies that threaten public space. In terms of the attempts to revitalize public space, this thesis points out the...