Improving the sense of community in residential environments based on the adaptation of two theories of Cristopher Alexander’s pattern language and Kim and Kaplan’s cognitive schema (Looking at Sarcheshme neighborhood in Zanjan)

Research Problem: Cities and residential areas as a product of human substitution, until around the 1960s, the experience of centuries was the experience of human design, but the method of planning and designing cities and neighborhoods changed drastically in the last one hundred years, and with rapid urban growth, urban planning was given to professional planners and urban planners. Dedicated traffic planning for the traffic of cars in the urban environment intensified the riding traffic in the urban environment to the population, which makes spatial planning with urban and local quality and livability forgot and a lot of problems. Improving the sense of community and collective interactions is one of the widespread demands in contemporary residential environments. This is rooted in the lack of attention to people and their needs in the planning and design of the residential area, which has been approved by international and Iranian theorists. This research aims to propose a framework for improving social sense by using the theory of mental schemas (the field of cognitive psychology) and matching it with Alexander's pattern language theory (the field of environmental planning and design).
Research Question: The questions raised in the research include the following:
What is the relationship between residents' mental schemas about collective interactions and the sense of neighborhood with the pattern language?
How can the pattern language in residential areas promote collective interactions and a sense of neighborhood?
Research Method: In this process, the pattern language theory and 253 patterns proposed by Alexander have been examined in residential areas. 35 patterns were identified that are related to residential areas. Then, using the qualitative research method, the internal connections between mental schema and language concepts were identified by describing and analyzing the content of related texts. In explaining the relationships and logical integration of the data, the method of logical reasoning was carefully used in the opinions of the experts. In the following, three residential schemas were explained by examining the concept of mental schemas in cognitive psychology knowledge, including residential identity, individual-social interaction, and local attachment. These schemas are presented using Kim and Kaplan's theory
The Most Important Results and Conclusion: By examining the concept of mental schemas in the field of cognitive psychology knowledge, three schemas related to the residential environment including residential identity, individual-social interaction, and local attachment were explained. Examining the relationship between the design patterns of residential areas with the residence-base schemas revealed a solution to strengthen the sense of community in these spaces. In order to improve the social sense of residents, residential identity schema with 11 patterns, individual interaction schema with 10 patterns, social interaction schema with 8 patterns, and local attachment schema with 6 patterns can play a role. Considering the cognitive nature of schemas, the interweaving and continuity of planning and design patterns through event-oriented plays an important role in the qualitative improvement of residential areas. The results of the research reveal the internal validity of the model language theory in connection with the theory of cognitive schemas to strengthen the interactions of residential areas. So the application of the proposed framework in the historical neighborhood of Sarcheshme neighbourhood in Zanjan reveals its external validity through mind structures, components, model language, and planning and design solutions.