AN UNWED MOTHER'S REFUGE

Abstract

This thesis purposes to understand the relationship between the built environment and the human behavior of its users and to explore the design of environments of social institutions that are more human-oriented through the investigation of the activity patterns and behavioral needs of the building users as primary determinants of form. The proposed vehicle is that of a shelter for unwed mothers. Generally the proposed shelter operates at three levels; the private residential program (consisting of residential services for pregnant and parenting young women), the semi-private family therapy, educational and skill-impartation program (including pre and post-natal health services, professional counseling, peer support and parenting education) and the public administrative front that run facilities accessible to the general public, at the same time, providing job-training opportunities and social re-integration for the unwed mothers. The thesis attempts to create a responsive environment through the use of different scale (domestic versus institutional) and varying levels of privacy to enable the residents their individual private retreats as well as communal living and interaction. Based on the interrelationship of the users of the building and the privacy requirements of the different zones, the spatial layout sought to establish the hierarchy, variation and inter-relationship of the public and private living and communal spaces to serve the residents as well as the public users of the building.