In this article a framework is proposed for explaining individual evaluation of the natural environment. In order to create a more comfortable environment, a reliable environmental evaluation is necessary. During the evaluation process it is of the utmost importance to 1) be aware of and respect the variety of values and needs of individuals ; 2) understand the wide variety of environmental quality ; 3) be able to explain the interaction of persons to their environment. A conceptual model for evaluating the natural environment based on information processing theory was proposed. It was hypothesized that two factors influenced the process for evaluation of environmental items. One is the individual psychological environment which provides information for judgements. The other is the individual characteristics which influence rules for judgement, such as demographic variables, value systems and lifestyles. Moreover for practical management of the physical environment in the future, it is useful to construct a model in which the evaluation of the environment can be explained in terms of a limited number of individual and environmental variables.

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Hojoki by Kamo-no-Chomei (1155-1216) is an intensive study of the meaning of 'dwelling,' taking the 'impermanence of a person and his place' in this world as its main theme. In the first of its two volumes, he describes in an objective and scientific manner various aspects of the 'impermanence of a person and his place' in this world by analyzing his encounters with a great fire, a tornado, a relocation of the capital, a famine and a big earthquake and his suffering from living in the city. His general posture is defensive and evasive in the first volume, while it turns to become positive in the second volume where he starts his search for a safe and peaceful dwelling place after he has changed his residence several times. His 'Hojo' is a smallest living space with a minimal set of required conditions and made of a transportable prefabricated structure. He may have adopted the prefabricated structure to provide a wider selection of choices for a building site. On the basis of his description of 'Hinoyama,' a building site of his choice, and our survey of the place where 'Hojo' is believed to have been located, his selection of the site is a true reflection of his design concept of a dwelling place as a combination of 'a place and a space.' Chapters of Hojoki are in the chronological order, reflecting the author's development of the concept. A general description of a dwelling in the early chapters changes gradually into a definitive account of the 'Hojo' in Hinoyama. The concept of 'impermanence,' which is the main theme in the first volume, changes into a positive and creative pursuit of life in 'Hojo,' and finally turns into a meditative reflection upon his life itself at his death. This conceptual development of Kamo-no-Chomei is surprisingly similar to what O.F.Bollnow has to say about 'Wohnen.' The common object of the two is a search for the true meaning of a dwelling place.

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