A Comparative Study of Place-Behavior Patterns in Houses before and after the Earthquake in the Village of Sarand

Sarand is a village in the county of Harris in the East Azerbaijan province, Iran. In 2012, it suffered a total destruction in an earthquake. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the housing pattern proposed for the injured and to compare it with the previous patterns. Also, a comparative evaluation is performed of the behavioral patterns in both pre- and post-earthquake settings to clarify the deficiencies and problems encountered. In order to achieve the desired goals, in addition to studying the existing documents, a field survey was done. For this purpose, the descriptive exploratory method was used in the research.The results of the research indicate that the patterns of place-behavior in Sarand village houses after the earthquake are fundamentally different from the pre-earthquake patterns. Due to the hasty reconstruction of buildings, little or no attention was paid to the traditional and indigenous patterns, participation of the villagers, and issues of rural livelihoods. In addition, the results indicate that the language of the new housing model after the earthquake is in contrast to the language of the traditional housing model. In the case of human patterns, it can be concluded that the place-behavior patterns of traditional houses have turned into poor physical-functional patterns in the new houses. Therefore, possible problems in such cases can be reduced in the future by the cooperation and involvement of users in reconstruction processes, using of their experiences and opinions, and application of traditional and indigenous principles.