The term
Ekistics (coined by
Konstantinos Apostolos Doxiadis in 1942) applies to the science of human settlements. It includes regional, city, community planning and dwelling design. It involves the study of all kinds of
human settlements, with a view to geography and ecology — the physical environment — and human psychology and anthropology, and culture, politics, and occasionally aesthetics. As a scientific mode of study, it is currently found to rely on statistics and description, organized in five
ekistic elements or principles: nature, anthropos, society, shells, and networks. It is generally a more scientific field than
urban planning, and has considerable overlap with some of the less restrained fields of
architectural theory.