Abstract
Human development at all ages and stages is shaped by a dynamic and continuous interaction between biology and experience. Virtually every aspect of human development is affected by the environments and experiences that are encountered in a cumulative fashion. This fact is becoming more widely understood in fields as diverse as public health, psychology, occupational therapy, urban and regional planning, architecture, and engineering. During this chapter, using a universal design perspective, we will explore how the planning, design, construction, and maintenance of built environments at all scales and levels can improve or detract from human development, can create or prevent disability across the lifespan, and can serve as either a barrier or facilitator for various potentially vulnerable populations. The benefits and risks discussed, in many cases, will not only apply to potentially vulnerable populations, but to the entire population. We will also describe various examples of how these dynamics have and are playing out in the real world.
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Kochtitzky, C., Cracchiola, M. (2016). Built Environments for Improving Human Development and Promoting Health and Quality of Life. In: Rubin, I.L., Merrick, J., Greydanus, D.E., Patel, D.R. (eds) Health Care for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities across the Lifespan. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18096-0_32
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18096-0_32
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