Perceived productivity in open-plan design library: Exploring occupant behavior and perception

Libraries in higher education face drastic spatial changes, transforming spaces traditionally used for housing books to spaces for interaction and shifting from individual learning to team-based learning. This study aims to (1) identify space uses, (2) examine the environmental satisfaction, support for productivity, and perceived productivity depending on space, and (3) test their relationships. The results of 66 survey responses suggest that students still come to the library for individual study, and students in quiet zones show high environmental satisfaction. Environmental satisfaction is indirectly associated with creativity, while environmental support with acoustic comfort is directly related to concentration

Place attachment theory

This chapter explores current thinking about place attachment in the workplace. Place attachment describes the emotional bond between person and place. In the field of environmental psychology, place attachment has been identified as a significant predictor of an individual’s decision to act in a physical environment. However, the construct of place attachment has received scant attention in extant management literature. However, organisations are often forced to modify their places of work and relocate employees in response to new business strategies. The impact of these changes on people and work are rarely considered. People exhibit varied responses to such changes, with drastic changes requiring careful adjustments to address ‘emotional’ transitions. Can place attachment provide a useful concept for guiding workplace decisions? This chapter seeks to expose the gaps in our understanding of ‘attachment’ as a phenomenon. It recognises possible overlaps in environmental psychology and change management literature, as well as gaps between them, and considers how both fields can contribute to understand the workplace and the workspace

Diffusion Of Innovation In Sustainable Building Practices In Construction Projects And The Role Of Major Stakeholders

The purpose of this study is to examine the adoption of sustainable building practices and understand stakeholder relationships that may influence the adoption of sustainable building practices. The study proposes a conceptual framework based on an extensive review of literature in the following areas: 1) the nature of construction practice and particular challenges for sustainability, 2) stakeholder interactions and information flows in construction projects, and 3) diffusion of innovation in the building context. A set of factors that may influence the adoption of sustainable building practices by stakeholders in construction projects are included in this conceptual framework. The study then tests some key components of the framework using empirical data, to shed new light on the mechanism of achieving sustainable building practices. This study includes buildings that both have and have not adopted sustainable building practices (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and Energy Star certifications) in the New York metropolitan area, and identifies organizations involved in projects in order to understand the trajectory of the adoption process and the diffusion among project stakeholders. Findings indicate that stakeholders' previous exposure to sustainable practices increased the likelihood of projects adopting sustainable practices; and having an architect and a general contractor who had worked on sustainable building practices increased the likelihood of adopting sustainable building programs. On the other hand, stakeholders' previous work collaboration is not associated with the adoption of sustainable building practices and it may not necessarily strengthen the relationships among stakeholders. The study makes theoretical, methodological, and practical contributions. The proposed conceptual framework integrates theories in diffusion of innovation and stakeholder theories in the building industry to understand the elements of the adoption process of new practices for better sustainability outcomes. The methodology developed to utilize multiple secondary datasets contribute to future research methods by enabling the accumulation of knowledge. It is important to point out that the small sample size included in the data analysis limits the internal and external validities of the findings above. Therefore, it is hard to claim these findings without further research, which is suggested at the end of this study

Forecasting Total and Type-Specific Non-Residential Building Construction Spending: The Case Study of the United States and Lessons Learned

Forecasting construction spending is important for civil engineering practitioners to make business decisions. Currently, the main body of forecasting literature pertains exclusively to aggregate construction investment, such as total construction spending (TTLCON), private construction spending, or residential construction spending. But type-specific construction spending, such as that for education, healthcare, and religion, had yet to be explored using forecasting techniques. This case study presents a viable procedure by which aggregate and type-specific non-residential construction can be forecasted. The procedure that involves the use of the Granger causality test and the Vector Autoregression (VAR) model proved to be able to provide an accurate forecast pre-COVID-19, with some accuracy even during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Lessons learned include the following: (1) effort should be diverted towards model interpretation, as the impulse–response trial yields results conforming to current well-established empirical evidence; (2) a type-specific approach should be adopted when analyzing construction spending, as different types of construction spending react differently to potential indicators; and (3) complex models incorporating multiple indicators should be used to generate a forecast, as a complex model has a higher chance of containing parameters explanatory of the target variable’s features during the testing period

Multidimensional Environmental Factors and Sleep Health for Aging Adults: A Focused Narrative Review

The timing, amount, and quality of sleep are critical for an individual’s health and quality of life. This paper provides a focused narrative review of the existing literature around multidimensional environments and sleep health for aging adults. Five electronic databases, Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed/Medline; EBSCOhost, PsycINFO (ProQuest), and Google Scholar yielded 54,502 total records. After removing duplicates, non-peer reviewed academic articles, and nonrelevant articles, 70 were included for review. We were able to categorize environmental factors into housing security, home environment, and neighborhood environment, and, within each environmental category, specific elements/aspects are discussed. This paper provides a comprehensive map connecting identified levels of influence (individual, home/house, and neighborhood-level) in which subfactors are listed under each level of influence/category with the related literature list. Our review highlights that multidimensional environmental factors can affect aging adults’ sleep health and eventually their physical, mental, and cognitive health and that sleep disparities exist in racial minorities in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities in which cumulative environmental stressors coexist. Based on this focused narrative review on the multidimensional sleep environments for aging adults, knowledge gaps are identified, and future research directions are suggested