Elali, Gleice Virginia Medeiros de AzambujaSilva, Augusto Rodrigo Bezerra da2024-04-042024-04-042023-12-27SILVA, Augusto Rodrigo Bezerra da. Usos e significados: um estudo das experiências de jovens e idosos na praça da Matriz em Vitória de Santo Antão-PE. Orientadora: Dra. Gleice Virginia Medeiros de Azambuja. 2023. 153f. Dissertação (Mestrado em Arquitetura e Urbanismo) - Centro de Tecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, 2023.https://repositorio.ufrn.br/handle/123456789/58012Spatial experiences are dynamic and transform over time, as the ways in which people experience and enjoy the city also change. By enjoying public spaces as places of experience and expression, people reaffirm themselves as agents who participate and act in the dynamics of urban life, a process that makes the space a producer of meaning. Based on these understandings, this research took as its object of study the uses and experiences in public space. The area investigated covered the historic center of Vitória de Santo Antão-PE, focusing on Dom Luís de Brito square (Matriz) and João Fernandes Viêira street, which borders it, and since 2021 has participated in the “Praça da gente” program (with exclusive use for pedestrians on weekends and holidays). The objective of the study was to understand how young and old people experience the Dom Luiz de Brito square (Matriz) in Vitória de Santo Antão-PE, in order to identify patterns of behavior, preferences and meanings attributed to the space. The specific objectives were: (i) to articulate the notions of experience and public space in order to support the intended empirical activity; (ii) identify the dynamics of use and appropriation of that space by young and old people; (iii) explore the meanings of that space for different age groups, paying attention to the divergences and convergences between them. The research, methodologically characterized as qualitative and phenomenologically based, involved literature review and empirical research with a multi-method approach, with interviews, behavioral observation and spatial analysis carried out. The results indicate that, due to perceptions, interests and modes of appropriation characteristic of each age, people from different age groups experience free public spaces in different ways. It was evident that young people see Praça da Matriz (Matriz square) and the adjacent street as privileged places for recreational and social activities, marked by a lively nightlife atmosphere on weekends. Their occupation practices, full of dynamism and enthusiasm, contrast with the elderly's preference for a more serene, daytime environment, conducive to contemplation. The activities of the "Praça da gente" program were perceived positively by both groups, highlighting the importance of these urban interventions in the perception and experience of public space. Public space is not static, but rather shaped by the experiences and perceptions of the people who inhabit it, emphasizing the continuous need to consider the demands and interests of different age groups in the construction and management of urban environments.Acesso AbertoEspaços públicosPercepção ambientalGrupos etáriosExperiênciasmasterThesisCNPQ::CIENCIAS SOCIAIS APLICADAS::ARQUITETURA E URBANISMO