If you had read some of the massively cynical & exploitive stuff I have had to over the years, you would be wary too and this stuff would jump out to you the same way a pregnant woman sees other pregnant women almost everywhere she goes.

yes and authoritarians see authoritarians everywhere. Seriously i think you are over thinking this. The cash counter floors are raised to give the clerk a better view over the aisles. When you are the only one on duty in a convenience store, you need a better awareness of whats going on in the store.

As for the architecture of banks and doctor's offices, you are close, but ist not entirely driven by the evil bankers and doctors. their is a psychological effect involved just as you wrote, but I don't think a sinister one is at play. People want to feel their banks are places of security. That means they like to see bricks and mortar, not flimsy siding. If you walked into a doctor's office with 70's decor and shag carpet would you believe your doctor was keeping up on the latest in his practice. Also doctors are required to complete continuing education requirements, so your little snark about them being out of med school for 30 years shouldn't matter.

On the the shopping centers you have it exactly right. I know this because most of the architecture I do is remodeling existing shopping centers. They can't compete with Walmarts prices so they go after a more affluent market share. There is a huge percentage of people who will never set foot in a Walmart. I'm not one of them, because lower prices are more valuable to me than atmosphere.

For a long time Walmart did this too, but in reverse. They wanted to show their customers they weren't wasting money on Interior Design, but istead passing on the savings to their customers. They were pretty successful at conveying that image even though their stores felt cheap and dirty and not very safe. Things have changed and even Walmart is starting to pay attention to colors, lighting, and flooring. I think they realized that people don't really like feeling cheap dirty and unsafe even if they are getting an awesome deal on groceries.

I don't buy into the authoritarian arguments. Where you see authoritarianism, I see capitalism seeking a way to draw in people by conveying certain imagry or by providing a level of comfort. Its what architects think about when they design, not how their clients can best stick it to their clientele.