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Examples of research on the aesthetic characteristics of environments and their direct impacts on economic vitality, on the activation of public spaces, on the likelihood that people will interact and socialize, on rates of walking and exercise, on more ecological lifestyles, and on health and well-being:
Frumkin, H. (2003). Healthy places: exploring the evidence. American Journal of Public Health, 93(9), 1451-1456.
Ulrich, R. S. (1986). Human responses to vegetation and landscapes. Landscape and Urban Planning, 13, 29-44.
Ulrich, R. S., Simons, R. F., Losito, B. D., Fiorito, E., Miles, M. A., & Zelson, M. (1991). Stress recovery during exposure to natural and urban environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 11(3), 201-230.
Heerwagen, J. (2009). Biophilia, health, and well-being. In: Campbell, Lindsay; Wiesen, Anne, eds. Restorative commons: Creating health and well-being through urban landscapes. Gen. Tech Rep. NRS-P-39. US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 38-57.
Cetintahra, G. E., & Cubukcu, E. (2015). The influence of environmental aesthetics on economic value of housing: An empirical research on virtual environments. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, 30(2), 331-340.
Garcia-Domenech, S. (2015). Urban aesthetics and social function of actual public space: a desirable balance. Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, 10(4), 54-65.
Craig, C. L., Brownson, R. C., Cragg, S. E., & Dunn, A. L. (2002). Exploring the effect of the environment on physical activity: a study examining walking to work. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 23(2), 36-43.
Ewing, R., Hajrasouliha, A., Neckerman, K. M., Purciel-Hill, M., & Greene, W. (2016). Streetscape features related to pedestrian activity. Journal of Planning Education and Research, 36(1), 5-15.
Cattell, V., Dines, N., Gesler, W., & Curtis, S. (2008). Mingling, observing, and lingering: Everyday public spaces and their implications for well-being and social relations. Health & Place, 14(3), 544-561.
Cold, B. (2001). Aesthetics, well-being and health: Essays within architecture and environmental aesthetics. London: Ashgate.
Mehaffy, M.W. (2019). Valuing the Benefits of Public Space Systems. Stockholm: Centre for the Future of Places. Available at http://sustasis.net/PS-Benefits.pdf
Salingaros, N. A. (2015). Biophilia and healing environments. London: Terrapin Bright Green.
Kellert, S. R., & Wilson, E. O. (1993). The biophilia hypothesis. Washington, D.C.: Island Press.
Handy, S. L., Boarnet, M. G., Ewing, R., & Killingsworth, R. E. (2002). How the built environment affects physical activity: views from urban planning. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 23(2), 64-73.