Abstract

This article explores individuals’ emotional experiences in urban environments and their ‘third space’ experiences. The main objective is to explain and propose the instrument called the “emotion map,” which allows researchers to understand and measure in a standardized way how emotions are manifested in specific environments and how they affect spatial experiences, even determining access to services. This study, involving 47 participants, demonstrates an emotion map’s effectiveness in revealing how emotions may influence spatial experiences and how they might provide crucial insights for urban planning and design. The study comprised 26 women and 21 men who were instructed to visually represent their emotions using colors and short narratives. The findings emphasize the significance of utilizing visual aids for comprehending the intricacy and profundity of emotions in the third space. These tools provide exceptional viewpoints that supplement the conventional techniques of geography and urban planning, which often rely on written and spoken language. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2025.