User satisfaction of indoor environmental quality in student dormitories

Abstract

Dormitories are buildings that continuously provide accommodation to students. Many university students in Turkey prefer to stay in private or state dormitories. The purpose of this study is to understand the criteria that are seen important by students, who stay in dormitories, and to assist the fulfilment of necessary performance specifications of buildings. Another goal is to assist the development of design criteria for new buildings by collecting user opinions related to issues that create dissatisfaction. A hypothesis was developed believing that improvement of structural comfort conditions in dormitories would increase the efficiency of students. In the scope of this study a questionnaire was prepared and used to understand user satisfaction levels related to comfort in three state dormitories located in Uludag University Gorukle Campus in the city of Bursa, which is the 4th largest city in Turkey. The results of the survey were analysed under the following headings: Transportability, Accessibility, Ergonomics in the context of Design and Planning; Thermal Comfort, Audio Comfort, Visual Comfort, and Indoor Air Quality in the context Physical Environmental Control; and Service Areas in the context of Social Environment.