Research Group Facility Management, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Groningen, The Netherlands.
International Feng Shui Association, Singapore, Singapore.
PLoS One. 2024 Jun 5;19(6):e0303032. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0303032. eCollection 2024.
In a global effort to design better hospital buildings for people and organizations, some design principles are still surrounded by great mystery. The aim of this online study was to compare anxiety in an existing single-bed inpatient hospital room with three redesigns of this room in accordance with the principles of Golden Ratio, Feng Shui, and Evidence-Based Design.
In this online multi-arm parallel-group randomized trial participants were randomly assigned (1:1:1:1) to one of four conditions, namely Golden Ratio condition, Feng Shui condition, Evidence-Based Design condition, or the control condition. The primary outcomes were anxiety, sense of control, social support, positive distraction, and pleasantness of the room.
Between June 24, 2022, and August 22, 2022, 558 individuals were randomly assigned to one of the four conditions, 137 participants to the control condition, 138 participants to the Golden Ratio condition, 140 participants to the Feng Shui condition, and 143 participants to the Evidence-Based Design condition. Compared with baseline, participants assigned to the Evidence-Based Design condition experienced less anxiety (mean difference -1.35, 95% CI -2.15 to -0.55, Cohen's d = 0.40, p < 0.001). Results also showed a significant indirect effect of the Feng Shui condition on anxiety through the pleasantness of the room (B = -0.85, CI = -1.29 to -0.45) and social support (B = -0.33, CI = -0.56 to -0.13). Pleasantness of the room and social support were mediators of change in anxiety in the Evidence-Based Design and Feng Shui conditions. In contrast, application of the design principle Golden Ratio showed no effect on anxiety and remains a myth.
To our knowledge, this is the first randomized controlled trial linking design principles directly to anxiety in hospital rooms. The findings of our study suggest that Feng Shui and Evidence-Based Design hospital rooms can mitigate anxiety by creating a pleasant looking hospital room that fosters access to social support.
The trial is registered with ISRCTN, ISRCTN10480033.
在全球范围内，为了设计更好的供人和组织使用的医院建筑，一些设计原则仍然充满了神秘感。本项在线研究的目的是比较根据黄金比例、风水和循证设计原则重新设计的一间单人间住院病房与现有病房相比，患者的焦虑程度。
本项在线多臂平行组随机临床试验将参与者随机分配（1:1:1:1）至黄金比例组、风水组、循证设计组或对照组。主要结局为焦虑、控制感、社会支持、积极分心和房间的舒适度。
2022 年 6 月 24 日至 8 月 22 日期间，共 558 名参与者被随机分配至四组中的一组，对照组 137 名，黄金比例组 138 名，风水组 140 名，循证设计组 143 名。与基线相比，被分配至循证设计组的参与者的焦虑程度降低（平均差值-1.35，95%置信区间-2.15 至-0.55，Cohen's d = 0.40，p < 0.001）。结果还显示，风水组通过房间舒适度（B = -0.85，CI = -1.29 至 -0.45）和社会支持（B = -0.33，CI = -0.56 至 -0.13）对焦虑的间接影响具有统计学意义。房间舒适度和社会支持是循证设计和风水条件下焦虑变化的中介因素。相比之下，黄金比例设计原则的应用对焦虑没有影响，这仍然是一个谜。
据我们所知，这是第一项将设计原则与医院病房中的焦虑直接联系起来的随机对照试验。本研究的结果表明，风水和循证设计的病房可以通过营造一个美观的病房，促进获得社会支持，从而减轻焦虑。
该试验在 ISRCTN 注册，ISRCTN81655053。
