Residents’ lamp purchasing behaviour, indoor lighting characteristics and choices in Swedish homes

Abstract

Indoor lighting is known to affect people’s wellbeing, mood and behaviour. The rapid development of new energy-efficient lamp technologies has enabled new lighting applications in home environments. To investigate the prospects of introducing a personalised light emitting diode (LED)-based home lighting technology, a mixed-methods research study was carried out, applying the goal-framing theory. The results, based on a questionnaire survey ( N = 536), show that purchasing costs of energy-efficient lamps have little effect on consumers’ lamp choices, and that the degree of consumer acceptance of LED lamps has increased in recent years without resulting in increased lighting use. The results confirm that Swedish homes are characterised by many lamps, an average of 39 per home, but there is a significant variation across tenure type. Based on a qualitative analysis of interviews with 12 participants, the conclusion can be drawn that residents seem to know what kind of lighting they want, but they do not necessarily have what they want for a variety of reasons. Besides individual characteristics, situational factors influence residents’ home lighting and visual comfort, such as the indoor built home environment and the availability of lighting products. Consequently, responsibility for residents’ actual home lighting also lies with housing developers, lighting producers and providers.

Leaving lights on – A conscious choice or wasted light? Use of indoor lighting in Swedish homes

“…In a previous paper, we drew attention to the need for physical improvements in the home setting to facilitate residents' desired illumination. 20 The results of the present paper point to the need for technological solutions that support current human lighting behaviour. Luminaires for multiple purposes would be beneficial to residents, e.g.…”

“…limitations due to the physical home setting or product availability. 20 There are also culture-specific factors to consider besides differences between workplaces and homes. Swedish residents stand out compared with other countries in the EU in terms of the number of lamps in homes and light-related behaviour.…”

“…Another prominent lighting feature in Swedish homes is the frequent use of candlelight in the dark season. 20 Many studies have investigated people's lighting preferences concerning the colour tone of the light. A study that simulated residential applications using scale models of a living room and fabricated light sources of the same correlated colour temperature but different chromaticity showed that people prefer 'white' or minimally tinted light sources.…”

“…10 Korean female temporary residents visiting the US viewed the interior lighting as the most negative feature in their apartments because of light levels being too low, and the absence of a central, surface-mounted luminaire in each room, which is common in Korea. 33 Only a few research studies have examined the characteristics and use of home lighting in Scandinavia, drawing particular attention to either the features of the lighting, such as the number of lamps and their position in the room, residents' desired performance factors of lamps 20 or spatial light distribution. 34 The importance of using light to create an atmosphere has been confirmed across several studies.…”

Windows: a study of residents’ perceptions and uses in Sweden

“…Gerhardsson & Laike Buildings and Cities DOI: 10.5334/bc.120 electric light sources has been reported elsewhere (Gerhardsson et al, 2019(Gerhardsson et al, , 2020. The present study focuses on windows, serving as sources of daylight.…”