The effect of thermal environment on stress and thermal comfort of college students under acute stress

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to explore the impact of the indoor thermal condition on people’s stress and thermal comfort under acute stress. Therefore, an experiment was carried out on 20 human subjects in the climate chamber. Three thermal conditions (PMV = −1, PMV = 0 and PMV = 1) were created. Trier social stress test was used as the program to stimulate acute stress and was divided into three stages: Pre-stressor, Stressor task and Post-stressor under each thermal condition. To analyse stress and thermal sensation, a survey was conducted and human subjects completed questionnaire provided about their responses. Furthermore, the psychophysiological responses of subjects were measured by electroencephalogram at different thermal conditions. The results indicate that subject’s stress is not significantly related to the thermal environment conditions in the stage of Pre-stressor. However, a neutral and slightly cold environment can reduce the stress of the subjects in the Stressor task, while a slightly warm environment would increase more acute stress. The thermal environment and psychological stress were found to have a combined effect, which could affect the thermal sensation, thermal comfort and acceptability of the environment when subjects were under acute stress stimulation.

Studies on Techniques to Enhance Local Libraries’ Public Space Quality--Using the Jiayu County Library in the Chinese province of Hubei, Xianning City, as an Example

“…The natural environment affects and restricts the service effectiveness of the library's physical space [3] , and also determines the ecological quality of public space. One of the relevant factors in the evaluation of indoor environmental comfort is the comfort of its physical environment, such as sound, light, heat, and other elements of the physical properties of the natural or artificial environment in line with the requirements of human comfort [4] , a good natural environment is the guarantee of good ecological quality of public space.…”

Investigation of the Relationship between Tension Level and Thermal Sensation. A Case Study of University Study Hall

“…Moreover, occupants are let to adjust their physical activities, open, or close the windows and/or doors, and change their garments if they feel uncomfortable in the environment. Thus, in addition to past experiences, adaptation, stress level, current mood is being prominent in evaluation of the ATC model [9][10][11]. Recent literature has shown a significant difference between the PMV and AMV values [12,13].…”