The Anatomy of an Architect’s Argument: Formally Capturing Socially-Oriented Design Intentions in the Built Environment

Abstract: Sustainability is a large driving factor in today’s society.This work focuses on assessing values contributing to the social sustainability of buildings. Social values encompass aspects such as well-being and the building’s impact on the occupants regarding qualities such as air quality, visual comfort, and privacy among others.We introduce “ProFormalize”, a formalization framework, for capturing the structure of design arguments regarding social values. Moreover, presenting the formalization of design intentions and activities obtained through case-study focused interviews.In addition, the organization and formalization of design arguments are presented as preparation for software implementation.