호텔 수영장의 감성디자인이 심리적 회복과 경험가치에 미치는 영향 - 디자인 유형과 이용빈도의 역할 -

(Background and Purpose) As mental health and stress have become significant issues in modern society, there is growing interest in healing leisure activities aimed at improving quality of life and pursuing happiness. In response to these concerns, travel and hotel vacations focused on rest and healing have gained popularity, with hotels emerging as important spaces for providing leisure and emotional recovery to urban residents. Hotels are recognized as essential amenities that offer extraordinary experiences and relaxation through emotional design. Given that Koreans value health, happiness, and leisure, more attention should be directed to the healing role of hotel swimming poolsModern individuals increasingly utilize their leisure time to enhance quality of life and seek healing, with hotel vacations (so-called “hocance”) emerging as a mainstream leisure trend. In particular, hotel swimming pools serve as key spaces providing emotional stimulation and healing experiences, underscoring the need for systematic research. This study aims to investigate the effects of emotional design in hotel swimming pools on visitors’ experiential value and psychological restoration, and to analyze differences in recovery effects according to design type (familiar vs. unique) and frequency of use. (Method) The study focused on indoor and outdoor swimming pools of 4- and 5-star hotels in Korea opened or renovated between 2014 and 2023. Through literature review, the conceptual framework for emotional design, experiential value, and psychological restoration was established, followed by a qualitative case analysis to identify emotional design characteristics. Based on these findings, a structured questionnaire was developed. Data were collected from 216 valid responses using a self-administered online survey conducted from October 4 to 10, 2024, targeting individuals who visited hotel swimming pools within the past year. (Results) Emotional design sub-factors significantly influenced psychological restoration, with experiential value serving as a key mediator. Symbolism fully mediated the relationship with hedonic value, while extraordinariness had a direct effect without mediation. Affordance partially mediated cognitive restoration through functional value and directly affected emotional recovery. Unique design showed stronger positive effects on hedonic value and emotional restoration compared to familiar design. Visitors who used hotel pools 5–6 times a year reported the highest recovery levels. (Conclusions) This study confirms that emotional design elements exert differential effects on psychological restoration and experiential value, depending on the level and frequency of sensory stimulation. It also highlights the potential of hotel swimming pools as long-term restorative leisure spaces beyond short-term healing. Strategic application of emotional design and optimal stimulus planning can enhance visitors’ recovery experiences and satisfaction.