Exploring the Link between Thermal Experience and Adaptation to a New Climate

Influence of long-term thermal history on thermal comfort and preference

“…The results showed higher temperature preferences and cooler thermal sensations for the residents in the UK who had been living in a warmer climate for two years before moving there [35]. The indoor air comfort temperature was also shown to be higher for subjects from warmer climatic background compared to the UK native residents [36]. However, a warmer indoor air temperature was reported by the residents from cooler climates than the UK residents, which can be due to their thermal adaptation to high levels of central space heating [36].…”

“…The indoor air comfort temperature was also shown to be higher for subjects from warmer climatic background compared to the UK native residents [36]. However, a warmer indoor air temperature was reported by the residents from cooler climates than the UK residents, which can be due to their thermal adaptation to high levels of central space heating [36]. It may be deduced here that people's exposure to warmth tends to play a more important role in thermal adaptation and as a result, in future thermal evaluations compared to exposure to cold.…”

“…Regarding long-term thermal history, it is evident in previous studies that long-term preexposure to both indoor [30][31][32][33][34] and outdoor climatic conditions [33,35,36] affects subjects' in-the-moment thermal comfort perceptions.…”

“…The relation between climatic background and the subjects' thermal comfort ratings was examined in a hall of residence in the UK [35,36] and in outdoor spaces in Israel [37]. The participants were people from different climatic backgrounds.…”

“…Nonetheless, these conclusions cannot be generalised to non-extreme climatic conditions. The research carried out in the temperate climate of the UK [35,36] was based on online post-occupancy evaluations, considering only two years pre-exposure of the subjects to a climatic condition [35,36]. None of the studies in this literature review demonstrated clear impacts of thermal history and expectations on thermal comfort in buildings that are shared by multiple occupants who have grown up in diverse climatic conditions.…”