Perfect Light Fixtures

Lighting has a dramatic psychological effect on how we perceive a space and affects how we feel when we use it. For instance, sunny room that gets lots of bright light are welcoming, warm, and cheery, making us feel good, while rooms that receive indirect light can be dull, lifeless and cold, leaving us depressed. People also feel alert, energetic, and positive on a sunny day, which causes bright highlights and crisp shadows in a room, and the opposite on a dull, drab day, when there is no contrast and the environment is stagnant, boring, and uninspiring. The difference between these two days can be chalked up to variations in the quality of light; the proper illumination can provide contrasts in a room that emulate the attributes of a sunny day.

Environmental psychologists evaluate the stimuli that must be processed in a room by those using it, which is relevant to how a space should be lit. Rooms that are crowded, asymmetrical, disorderly, unconventional or unfamiliar have a lot of stimuli and are considered high load, while rooms that are straightforward, symmetrical, conventional, familiar, and organized are less arousing and are considered low load. Tasks are gauged in the same way. Doing something demanding, such as reading a challenging book or writing a complex essay, is a high load task, while tasks that are simple or routine, such as paying bills or cleaning the house, are low-load tasks. Lower-load tasks require higher-load settings for optimum performance, and vice versa. Lighting can be used to increase or decreased stimulation by creating an emotional setting in a room that affects the performance of tasks. In fact, the proportions of the three types of lighting (background illumination, task lighting, and accent lighting) determine the emotional content of a room.

A space lighted with a large proportion of background illumination, evenly diffused, and a small amount of focused task lighting or decorative accent lighting, is a low contrast, low-stimulation space that is behaviorally neutral, as it is minimally stimulating. This type of environment is ideal for performing visual tasks such as reading or working. But too much diffuse light produces a boring, shadowless environment, which can evoke psychological reaction experienced on a cloudy day.

A space lighted with a small amount of diffuse light and a larger amount of focal light is a high-contrast environment featuring strong patterns of light and shade. This type of lighting plan increases stimulation and is intended to evoke specific moods and emotions. A room lit in this manner can also dominate the people in it; the contrast produces visual direction and focus by directing their attention and holding their interest.

Overall, people need lower-loaded settings for difficult, complex tasks or to feel contended, comfortable, and relaxed, and higher-loaded spaces for casual, pleasant activities or socializing, as a high degree of contrast encourages participation and stimulates enjoyment.

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