Spatial Characteristics and Social Interaction in Hybrid Third Places: A Case Study on Three Book Cafes

The third place refers to the social environment that is separate from the two usual social environments of the home “first place” and the workplace “second place”. Places that fulfil other functions in addition to food and drink, such as book cafés, where today’s people spend time alone in addition to socializing and which they sometimes use as offices to do their daily work on the computer, have been defined as hybrid third places. This study examines the spatial characteristics of hybrid third places that affect the social interactions between people using these spaces. In this context, comprehensive research was carried out on the literature on the relationship between social interaction and space, third places and the design of consumption spaces such as cafes, coffee houses and book cafes. In the second phase of the study, the impact of spatial characteristics obtained through literature research on social interactions in hybrid third places was revealed through a case study. Participant observation, behaviour maps, surveys and interviews were conducted in three different hybrid third-place book cafes. As a result of the study, it was found that the spatial characteristics of hybrid third places that affect social interaction consist of four main variables, namely physical, atmospheric, social and functional, as well as related sub-variables. For each variable identified in the study, suggestions were developed for the design of third places that would promote social interaction.