Bourikas and colleagues report interesting relationships between perceptions of various aspects of office environments. Their work indicates that “bad air quality is generally associated with a ‘warm’ thermal sensation response. . . . air quality . . . and noise perception (NSV) are both correlated with thermal perception (TSV). . . . Air quality perception was correlated with both TSV and NSV.. . .
Erkan investigated how temperature influences “architectural liking.” Study participants experienced “a virtual reality environment at three different temperatures (15°C, 22°C, 30°C). . . . An EEG device was used to determine the cognitive activities of the participants during space navigation. In addition, an eye-tracking device was used in virtual reality goggles to identify the areas that participants were looking at. It was determined that the architectural preferences of the people changed depending on the temperature of the space. . . .
Links to temperatures and sales
Parsons reviews current research on thermal comfort; material that can be usefully applied in a variety of environments, from offices to public spaces, indoors and outside. This text is useful to practitioners, from architects to ergonomists, and includes a model linking thermal conditions and human performance.
Ken Parsons. 2020. Human Thermal Comfort. Taylor & Francis; Boca Raton, FL.
Multiple factors temper impressions
Fay and Maner studied links between physical and social warmth. They found that “Laboratory studies have linked variability in temperature to the psychology of social affiliation. In colder ambient environments, for example, people report greater loneliness, and they pursue both physical warmth and social affiliation (i.e., social warmth). Here, a field experiment tested whether tactile warmth [basically, touching something warm] eliminates the effect of colder ambient temperatures on desires for social affiliation.
Research by Jin, Jin, and Kang confirms that there are complex interrelationships between our sensory experiences.
Thermostat settings to set
Neuroscience indicates that our thoughts and behaviors are meaningfully affected by the properties of the air that we breathe. In this article, we’ll review how scents, ventilation, temperature, and humidity influence human lives.
Spence investigated how temperature is linked to the experience of other sensory stimuli.
