The children’s built environment attributes scale: Development, validation, and implications for children living in institutional care

Hrishikesh Purandare; Ashwini Pethe; Amruta Punjabi; Shivanand Thorat; Bhaskar Shejwal

doi:10.31893/multirev.2026285

Keywords:

physical environment

orphanages

perceived spatial comfort

rating scale post-occupancy evaluation

Abstract

The built environment of childcare spaces plays an important role in the psychosocial wellbeing of a child. An appropriate physical environment encourages curiosity, independence, and a sense of belonging by serving as an active contributor to a child’s holistic growth. Natural light, safe and adaptable layouts, and access to outdoor spaces promote physical activity, cognitive engagement, and emotional well-being. Conversely, overcrowded and noisy spaces undermine a child’s sense of autonomy and security. Therefore, designing spaces that are child-friendly and comprehensible, and measuring the attributes of such a built environment, is essential. In India, childcare institutions (CCIs) are a dominant form of alternative care for orphaned and vulnerable children. There are limited tools that comprehensively measure and evaluate the built environment attributes of CCIs. Thus, a new Children’s Built Environment Attributes Scale (CBEAS) was constructed. Factor analyses of this scale yielded five factors: Crowding, Housing Quality, Space Personalization, Outdoor Spaces, and Spatial Autonomy. The scale showed internal consistency reliability (alpha). Data were collected from 147 Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC) residing in three different CCIs in Maharashtra, India, using a paper-and-pencil method. Various factors showed association differently and significantly predicted children’s well-being. These findings suggest the need to assess not only the overall built environment but also its individual components. A higher score for each component reflects a better built environment in relation to that specific component, except for crowding, where a higher score reflects lower crowding. The authors propose that the scale could be further modified and restandardized for use in various applications, such as childcare centers, residential schools, and similar settings.
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How to cite

Purandare, H., Pethe, A., Punjabi, A., Thorat, S., & Shejwal, B. (2025). The children’s built environment attributes scale: Development, validation, and implications for children living in institutional care. Multidisciplinary Reviews, 9(6), 2026285. https://doi.org/10.31893/multirev.2026285

[1] Akesson, B. (2016). Palestinian children forging national identity through the social and spatial practices of territoriality. In Z. Millei & R. Imre (Eds.), Childhood and nation: Critical cultural studies of childhood (pp. 143–160). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137477835_8

[2] Altman, I. (1975). The environment and social behavior: Privacy, personal space, territory, crowding. Brooks/Cole Publishing Company.

[3] Amissah-Essel, S., Hagan, J. E., Jr., & Schack, T. (2020). Assessing the quality of physical environments of early childhood schools within the Cape Coast Metropolis in Ghana using a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design. European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education, 10(4), 1158–1175. https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe10040081

[4] Backe-Hansen, E. (2023). Children’s perspectives in context. Children and Youth Services Review, 154, 107118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.107118

[5] Bernardo, A. B. I., Mateo, N. J., & Dela Cruz, I. C. (2022). The psychology of well-being in the margins: Voices from and prospects for South Asia and Southeast Asia. Psychological Studies, 67, 273–280. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12646-022-00676-5

[6] Biddle, S. K. (2017). Billy Gryphen’s house and other important places: The children’s geography of the Arcadia neighborhood (Honors thesis, Portland State University). University Honors Theses, 377. https://doi.org/10.15760/honors.376

[7] Biglia, L. V., Felippini, A., Ribeiro, T. B., Lima, T. M., & Aguiar, P. M. (2025). Development of a value assessment framework for health technology assessment in rare diseases drugs: Insights from a Delphi study in Brazil. International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care, 41(1), e6. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266462324004835

[8] Blades, R., & Kumari, V. (2011). Putting listening practice at the heart of early years practice: An evaluation of the Young Children’s Voices Network. NCB Research Centre.

[9] Bowne, J. B., Magnuson, K., Schindler, H. S., Duncan, G. J., & Yoshikawa, H. (2017). A meta-analysis of class sizes and ratios in early childhood education programs: Are thresholds of quality associated with greater impacts on cognitive, achievement, and socioemotional outcomes? Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 39(3), 407–428. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373716689489

[10] Bradley, R. H., & Putnick, D. L. (2012). Housing quality and access to material and learning resources within the home environment in developing countries. Child Development, 83(1), 76–91. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2011.01674.x

[11] Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Harvard University Press.

[12] Bronfenbrenner, U., & Morris, P. A. (1998). The ecology of developmental processes. In W. Damon & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Theoretical models of human development (5th ed., Vol. 1, pp. 993–1028). John Wiley & Sons.

[13] Cattell, R. B. (1966). The scree test for the number of factors. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 1(2), 245–276. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr0102_10

[14] Cha, K. (2023). The influence of classroom size and window view on young children’s executive functions and physiological responses, based on VR technology. Behavioral Sciences, 13(11), 936. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13110936

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