Objective: This study examines the physical patterns that influence the formation of an appropriate relationship between the inside and outside of the house. These patterns help to maintain the privacy of the house and also to connect this place to its outside environment. Since the optimal level of the relationship between the inside and the outside of the house is related to the lifestyle of the inhabitants, the research is limited to a specific spatial-cultural area, namely the middle fabric of Kermanshah. The close relationship of women, especially housewives, with the house has led to the research question being closer to being answered through the narrative of the female residents.
Method: The research method is qualitative content analysis. Data collection was continued through open-ended interviews with 16 housewives living in 9 houses in the middle fabric of Kermanshah until reaching theoretical saturation. After matching the initial findings from the interviews with the maps taken from the houses, open and axial coding was carried out.
Results: indicates that the optimal relationship between the inside and outside of the house is one that is controlled by the house inhabitants, i.e. from the inside to the outside; the more diverse the spaces in a house are in terms of the degree of connection with the outside, the more efficient that house is in shaping the desired relationship between the inside and outside. Also, two categories of physical patterns, namely "spatial layering" and "windows", help to achieve the desired relationship between inside and outside; the former, realized at horizontal and vertical levels and at macro and intermediate scales, denotes the placement of the private parts of the house (living and sleeping parts) at depth and upstairs, as well as other house spaces, including open, semi-open and closed spaces, adjacent to pathways, making these spaces a buffer for private spaces. Meanwhile, the position, size, depth, proportions, insulation or lack thereof, the ability to open or close 'windows' and their adjacency to the outside can affect the quality of the inside-outside relationship on a micro scale.
Conclusions: Another important finding is that in these houses, due to the long-term presence of the woman (mother) in the kitchen, this space has become the heart of the house and it is one of the most effective spaces that, when adjoined to the outside, helps to strengthen the inside-outside relationship.