Houses, and other spaces and environments in which people spend their time, have a crucial impact on quality of life. We are increasingly living in multi-cultural cities and communities, and this too significantly affects how we feel about spaces in which we live. This volume brings together psychologists, architects, designers and planners to discuss issues of housing, space, sustainability and multi-culturalism. In doing so, the book provides an insightful critical analysis of space, place and the quality of life. It also addresses the implications of intercultural tension on quality of life and on the way in which people use and interact in a multi-cultural space. With case studies from Spain, Turkey, Brazil, the UK, the USA and Israel, it discusses issues such as low-cost housing, security, environmental conservation and sustainability, alternative building techniques, cultural diversity and its impact on housing and urban design.

Perception has always been conceptualized as one of the most relevant processes within General Psychology. Perception theories also constitute one of the most firmly grounded roots of psychological knowledge, and their increasing scientific contribution has been recognized and used in many different disciplines and fields of research.
Environmental perception plays a similar role within the framework of Environmental Psychology. Theories and research in environmental perception are interested primarily in the processes involved in the development and processing of mental representations developed by subjects to better interpret and understand what surrounds them.
One of the first and principal concepts developed to investigate the mental representations of an environment is the cognitive map. Since Tolman coined the term, the concept of cognitive map has evolved to integrate many different sources which can influence such mental representations. The first of these sources is the environment itself. Studies on spatial orientation and spatial perception are primarily focused on the way that physical characteristics of the environment influence knowledge, wayfinding ability or orientation capabilities of the subjects.
All the works in this special issue are proof of the complexity of aspects involved in the understanding of the nature of the relation between people and the environment, as well as the high number of disciplines needed to deal with it. At all events, this issue seeks to shed some light on every aspect which may be relevant or may contribute to theoretical development in this scientific field.

Houses, and other spaces and environments in which people spend their time, have a crucial impact on quality of life. We are increasingly living in multi-cultural cities and communities, and this too significantly affects how we feel about spaces in which we live. This volume brings together psychologists, architects, designers and planners to discuss issues of housing, space, sustainability and multi-culturalism. In doing so, the book provides an insightful critical analysis of space, place and the quality of life. It also addresses the implications of intercultural tension on quality of life and on the way in which people use and interact in a multi-cultural space. With case studies from Spain, Turkey, Brazil, the UK, the USA and Israel, it discusses issues such as low-cost housing, security, environmental conservation and sustainability, alternative building techniques, cultural diversity and its impact on housing and urban design.