Eco-feedback design is a strategy for encouraging sustainable behavior by making users aware of the resources they consume. Reminding users of their resource usage can help them understand the environmental impacts of their actions and evoke feelings such as sympathy or responsibility for the environment. This study investigated two aspects of presenting resource usage information in eco-feedback designs: the quantitative clarity of the information, and the strength of emotion evoked by the designs. This paper examines how these two aspects of eco-feedback influence users’ perception and preference for the designs. Four design prompts with different levels of quantitative clarity and emotion were used to generate 16 designs. An online survey with these designs was distributed among students at four universities in two countries. Results from 216 valid responses showed evidence that both the quantitative and emotional aspects are important to the eco-feedback designs. The survey also gathered data about respondents’ knowledge about resource consumption. Results suggested that students in technical majors were generally better at estimating resource consumption, and tended to prefer designs with more quantitative data. In contrast, students in non-technical majors generally made less accurate estimates and tended to prefer designs that evoke stronger emotions. These findings could inform designers on how to make more effective eco-feedback designs to promote sustainable behaviors.

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The courtyard is one of the architectural features used in ancient times for many purposes, such as climate modifiers, as a place for family gatherings, and as a playground for children. Over time, the courtyard gradually disappeared, and it no longer has a special presence in residential buildings. The study deals with exploring courtyards in the old and modern buildings in the central region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which was characterized by its strong presence in ancient times. Therefore, the paper holds seven case studies to compare the most important features in commons, middle, and contemporary houses. The research reaches the truth of the extinction of the courtyard and its replacement by other elements that negatively affected the social, ecological, and economic aspects of Saudi residents, and assures the dependence on mechanical treatments that harmfully distressed the building energy likewise affected the social aspects at the level of family and society alike. Courtyards with environmental design basics provided high energy efficiency to building through daylight and ventilation which helps in decreasing electricity and HVAC loads. This paper invites researchers and builders to reuse the courtyard or the Patio concept again as a design tool in contemporary buildings to save future resources and maintain sustainability principles.

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