Need an Interior Designer AND a Therapist? Here's How a Design Psychologist Can Help

You know a beautiful space when you see one. But picking the “right” colors, furnishings, and layout for your own space is overwhelming; and you’ve decided to seek help.

Cue in “hired interior designer”, someone who can work with you to create a vision, and make it come to life. Sure, you had reservations about working with one. You fear giving control of your space over to someone else, especially at a cost. Nevertheless, you’ve hired an interior designer in hopes of gaining a great space.

Fast forward to the nitty gritty work together. You’re on board with the layout, the furnishings, and colors—well, sort of. To be honest, the wall color looks nice in theory but you’re not sure if it’s something you can sit with every day. And the of-the-moment clashing patterns seem nice, but you wonder if they’re versatile enough to go with other furnishings you might bring in the home. You’re also hesitant to approach your designer with some of the art you’ve stored in the basement because, maybe they won’t work anyway.

Does this angst sound familiar? These concerns are not unusual but may reflect a lack of clarity about the elements you need to create an emotionally supportive space. Of course, any good interior designer would have asked you all about how you plan to use the space, and your likes and dislikes. And you gave them the answers you had at the time; but maybe you weren’t as attuned to your needs as you needed to be. Maybe you weren’t entirely sure about what you needed to create a space that feels fulfilling. If that’s the case, no worries– cue in “hired design psychologist” with the expertise to handle this very issue. Below are 3 ways design psychologists can address your distress and enhance the interior design process.

Help You Better Understand What You Want and Why

Interior designers have the all-consuming and exhilarating task of creating spaces that affect our well-being. It’s their job to ensure that a space feels harmonious, exudes the right mood, and functions the way it’s supposed to. While the space may be straight out of an interior design magazine, it also has to resonate with us on an emotional level. And if it doesn’t, we may not always be able to articulate why. So here are a few things to consider.

People develop emotional connections to places based upon the social, cultural, and familial messages that have passed down (via Environmental Psychology for Design). So it’s quite likely that our response to a room is triggered by associations with similar rooms. A room with a 70’s inspired conversation pit may trigger a very different association than a room with floral wallpaper and matching curtains; and our response, positive or negative, has a lot to do with the meaning those rooms have for us. These meanings are activated by schemas or scripts we carry around with us. They help us make sense of, or comprehend what we are seeing (via Psychology and Design). If we cannot make sense of a room, or it’s very different from what we expect, we don’t usually have a positive emotional response to it.

Secondly, the meanings we ascribe to past experiences don’t occur in a bubble. Any reaction to a room should also consider our personality traits. Our personalities are complex, and it would be difficult to account for every personality type here. But there are a few traits that have been known to predict preferences for specific design elements (via Designology).

If you prefer energetic, lush environments inclined to give other people sensory overload, you just may be more extroverted. Think rich colors, busy patterns, and open-space concepts-- all the things you need to give you energy. On the other hand, if you prefer calming environments that give you space to think and contemplate life’s deeper meaning, you just may be more introverted. Think less saturated colors, subtle patterns, and segmented spaces—all the things you need to rejuvenate you. Another personality trait to consider is openness to experience. If your taste bends towards the eccentric and avant-garde, perhaps you're more open to experience. On the other hand, if you are more inclined to go with the tried-and-true in your decorating style, then maybe you’re less open to experience. Knowing these personality patterns may go a long way in helping you articulate not just what you want, but why you want it.

Address Emotionally Triggering Design Dilemmas

There are times when designing our space triggers (sometimes subconsciously) strong emotions more reflective of unresolved issues than passion for our design vision. Some may be consumed with regret about life choices, and the feeling of being stuck is permeating into their home design. Their home is filled with unpacked boxes and half-finished design projects that act as tangible representations of their struggle to forgive themselves and others, and live life more fully.

Others feel stuck because of long-standing issues with low self-worth and self-esteem, and they use their home as validation rather than a reflection of who they are. As a result, they too feel stuck, unsure of how to start furnishing their space for fear that one wrong move will be proof that they don’t really have it all together.

Still others experience trauma, also known as, “consistent and persistent hauntings of an initial crisis” (via Architectural Principles in the Service of Trauma-Informed Design) that impact the way they respond both physiologically and emotionally to a space.

These issues are what design psychologists are made for, and their knowledge of the emotional impact of spaces can be an asset to any interior designer or client. While there are some issues that need to be more fully unpacked in therapy, emotionally supportive design can be a holding space that reminds dwellers of who they are, who they can be, and what they can accomplish in the world.

Regret & Design

So how does combatting regret look like in design? Of course it looks different for different people, but any emotionally supportive design supports the person’s highest vision and goals. The late Robert Levithan (who was both an interior designer and a therapist) faced this very same issue when he began working with a client who was living out of boxes for three years due to regrets about past life decisions. The client had dreams of launching a business but had difficulty moving forward b/c she made a regretful decision; and attributed all her career and personal woes to that one decision. And as Levithan pointed out, regret is “misplaced” and leads to the erroneous assumption that one decision is responsible for all our problems. Given we don’t know how any one decision will turn out; nor do we know if that one decision saved us from a harsher fate, we must let it go, and learn to make the most of our current situation. With this idea in mind, Leviathan, helped the client create a space that allowed her to grow professionally and personally. This included a place for her to work her business during the day, and an area for socializing with friends. It was a space that reflected the unstuck version of her.

Self-Worth & Design

If you are feeling stuck because of anxiety, and a tendency to link your home design to your value, no amount of design will fix the problem; and learning to recognize your value becomes the goal. However, a design psychologist can help you design spaces in a way that reminds you of who you are ( via Interior Architectural Elements that Affect Human Psychology and Behavior). Any “good” design reflects our values and expectations; and influences our behavior. This can be achieved through different elements of design, including form, color, texture, sound, and scent. If you enjoy your friend’s homes for it’s laidback, cultural vibe; but freeze when you think about trying to achieve the same, a design psychologist can help you create an ideal home vision statement (via Some Place Like Home) that allows you to check it against any design decision you make, streamlining the process and avoiding endless ambivalence.

Trauma & Design

And for those whose unresolved traumatic experiences have wiggled its way into their design experience, know that trauma-informed design was developed to create spaces that include healing properties. A design psychologist can ensure the space includes sensory boundaries (spaces that preserve a sense of security), nested layers (spatial complexity that accommodates different needs and choices), and identity anchors (helps people see themselves in the environment), all of which can be translated into an aesthetically pleasing design (via Architectural Principles in the Service of Trauma-Informed Design).

Sensory boundaries consider the ways sensory information can be used to help us feel safe and secure. If you want to ensure that sounds are soothing, include design elements that provide the quality of sounds you enjoy (music, soothing water sounds) instead of just trying to block harsh sounds. If you are concerned about being over or underwhelmed, make sure that there is sufficient spatial complexity (e.g., different groupings of seating, privacy areas) that allow people to interact, take breaks, read, or any other activity they choose. A living space must have enough details to be considered interesting but not generate confusion ( via Psychology and Design). Lastly, in order to feel represented in your space, identity anchors such as furnishings and objects should reflect your interests and values.

Ensure you have a Self-Actualized Space

Essentially, design psychologists help to ensure that our spaces are not just nice to look at, but also make us feel safe, meet our needs for relationship, and support us psychologically and spiritually. In other words, they help us meet all our needs so that we can feel encouraged to be the best version of us. This is what is known as a self-actualized space; and knowing what your self-actualized space looks like depends on your environmental autobiography– a thorough write-up of your past, present, and future sense of place. (Some Place Like Home). In other words, your history with places, your present experience with home, and your future goals for your space are all wrapped up into recommendations for furnishings, layout, and even areas for growth. Some design psychologists work with interior designers to help achieve this. Others work independently as both the design psychologist and designer/decorator to ensure needs are met and incorporated into the overall design.

To sum it up, a design psychologist works with an interior designer or alone to ensure that you have enough self-awareness to know not just what you want but why; can help you address emotional issues triggered by design; and can help you achieve a space that meets your psychological needs, among others. To that end, a design psychologist is all about helping you achieve fulfilling design to create a space that is both beautiful and makes you feel good too.