Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. ... more Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. The present study instead examined preference for lighting levels. Among the reasons for investigating preferences is that preference measures theoretically include a variety of human reactions to lighting, including comfort, aesthetics, and performance. The purposes of Experiment 1 were to obtain preferences for lighting levels, judgments of the importance of lighting levels, and judgments about the desirability of controlling lighting level for 43 behavior settings of college students. The purposes of Experiment 2 were to replicate part of Experiment 1 and extend the research to other common behaviors occurring in the same settings studied in Experiment 1. Results indicated large differences in the variety of lighting preferred for various behaviors and settings. Judgments of importance of lighting level had a quadratic relationship to preferred illumination, that is, importance was greater for behavior settings preferred either dark or bright. Importance and control were strongly linearly related. Implications for I ES standards and future research are discussed.
People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of l... more People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of large buildings where it is not possible to have windows. In some of these situations, people could have `inside windows," that is, windows to another inside space rather than to the outside. Two studies investigated the desirability of inside windows. In the first study, 35 full-time secretaries and 205 students completed a questionnaire about both the desirability of inside windows in a number of situations and the effects of inside windows. Results indicated that inside windows were generally desirable. Secretaries rated inside windows as slightly less desirable than did students. Judgments concerning the effects of inside windows suggested that secretaries may have lower preferences because they tend to focus on the negative effects of inside windows relative to students. There were two settings for which secretaries and students were similar: the office and the library. In the second study, preferred sizes of inside windows were obtained using a model of an office. The 36 subjects indicated that inside windows were generally preferred, but were smaller than conventional windows for comparable spaces. The desire for inside windows, and their size, was greater if the space being viewed had a conventional window.
A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices ... more A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices compensate for the lack of windows. In Experiment 1, students rated the degree to which they perceived various office features to be substitutes for windows. Analyses revealed four general categories of potential window substitutes: other apertures (e.g., skylights), paintings/art, living things (e.g., plants), and panels (e.g., light panels). Experiment 2 supported the external validity of the data in Experiment 1 in that full-time office workers produced virtually identical ratings of window substitutability. Experiment 3 was a field study of 173 offices. Measurements were made of the number and size of windows, number and size of all potential window substitutes, and size of wall space available for pictures. Size was measured in degrees of visual angle from the office workers' chairs. No evidence was obtained to indicate that any of the features measured were more prevalent or larger in offices without windows. Furthermore, power analyses indicated that the study had sufficient power to find such effects. Experiment 4 was designed to investigate other potential reasons for the use of the items that were examined in Experiment 3. Several reasons, such as space personalization, were found to be perceived by office occupants as more important than the desire to compensate for lack of windows.
ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of peo... more ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of people's preferences for skylights. In an attempt to fill this void, three studies were conducted to assess skylight preferences and to explore the theoretical bases of these preferences. In Experiment 1, preferences for skylights varying in size and degree of clarity were made for 14 spaces. Analyses indicated that skylights preferences vary widely across spaces, but they are generally less desirable than windows. Skylights were judged to be particularly desirable in family rooms, living rooms, and kitchens. In Experiment 2, skylight preferences were obtained for 17 spaces. For these spaces, commonness of skylights and reasons for wanting skylights were evaluated by different subjects. One finding was that subjects believed skylights were less common than they would like them to be. Results also indicated that mean skylight preferences are reasonably reliable as well as predictable by both commonness and reasons. Experiment 3 was similar to Experiment 2 except that a within-subjects design was used. The results confirmed the findings of Experiment 2. In addition, they provided more detailed information about the relative importance of commonness and reasons for each space studied. Implications for future research and theory are discussed.
Effects of Setting on Window Preferences and Factors Associated with Those Preferences
Environment and Behavior, 1989
Window preference research on a few settings has found that windows are generally preferred and t... more Window preference research on a few settings has found that windows are generally preferred and that larger windows are preferred over smaller ones. No theoretical model of window preferences, however, has been proposed. The present experiment was designed to investigate window preferences across a large variety of common spaces and to examine reasons orfactors that may underlie these preferences with the ultimate goal of predicting them. Window preferences, in terms of size, number, and degree of transparency were made for 14 common spaces. Subjects then indicated the factors underlying their specific preferences from a list of 18 potential factors. Results showed that both window preferences and factors vary more widely than previous research would indicate. More important, however, it was demonstrated that the amount of windows desired in a space can be reliably predicted by knowing how important specific factors (e.g., having a view or good ventilation) are to individuals in tha...
People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of l... more People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of large buildings where it is not possible to have windows. In some of these situations, people could have `inside windows," that is, windows to another inside space rather than to the outside. Two studies investigated the desirability of inside windows. In the first study, 35 full-time secretaries and 205 students completed a questionnaire about both the desirability of inside windows in a number of situations and the effects of inside windows. Results indicated that inside windows were generally desirable. Secretaries rated inside windows as slightly less desirable than did students. Judgments concerning the effects of inside windows suggested that secretaries may have lower preferences because they tend to focus on the negative effects of inside windows relative to students. There were two settings for which secretaries and students were similar: the office and the library. In the s...
ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of peo... more ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of people's preferences for skylights. In an attempt to fill this void, three studies were conducted to assess skylight preferences and to explore the theoretical bases of these preferences. In Experiment 1, preferences for skylights varying in size and degree of clarity were made for 14 spaces. Analyses indicated that skylights preferences vary widely across spaces, but they are generally less desirable than windows. Skylights were judged to be particularly desirable in family rooms, living rooms, and kitchens. In Experiment 2, skylight preferences were obtained for 17 spaces. For these spaces, commonness of skylights and reasons for wanting skylights were evaluated by different subjects. One finding was that subjects believed skylights were less common than they would like them to be. Results also indicated that mean skylight preferences are reasonably reliable as well as predictable by both commonness and reasons. Experiment 3 was similar to Experiment 2 except that a within-subjects design was used. The results confirmed the findings of Experiment 2. In addition, they provided more detailed information about the relative importance of commonness and reasons for each space studied. Implications for future research and theory are discussed.
Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. ... more Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. The present study instead examined preference for lighting levels. Among the reasons for investigating preferences is that preference measures theoretically include a variety of human reactions to lighting, including comfort, aesthetics, and performance. The purposes of Experiment 1 were to obtain preferences for lighting levels, judgments of the importance of lighting levels, and judgments about the desirability of controlling lighting level for 43 behavior settings of college students. The purposes of Experiment 2 were to replicate part of Experiment 1 and extend the research to other common behaviors occurring in the same settings studied in Experiment 1. Results indicated large differences in the variety of lighting preferred for various behaviors and settings. Judgments of importance of lighting level had a quadratic relationship to preferred illumination, that is, importance was gr...
Windowlessness in the Workplace: A Reexamination of the Compensation Hypothesis
Environment and Behavior, 1993
A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices ... more A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices compensate for the lack of windows. In Experiment 1, students rated the degree to which they perceived various office features to be substitutes for windows. Analyses revealed four general categories of potential window substitutes: other apertures (e.g., skylights), paintings/art, living things (e.g., plants), and panels (e.g., light panels). Experiment 2 supported the external validity of the data in Experiment 1 in that full-time office workers produced virtually identical ratings of window substitutability. Experiment 3 was a field study of 173 offices. Measurements were made of the number and size of windows, number and size of all potential window substitutes, and size of wall space available for pictures. Size was measured in degrees of visual angle from the office workers' chairs. No evidence was obtained to indicate that any of the features measured were more prevalent or la...
Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 1990
Table 1 Where Students Remember Spending Time Females Males Significant Gender Space Freq. % Freq... more Table 1 Where Students Remember Spending Time Females Males Significant Gender Space Freq. % Freq. % Diff. (2) Classroom 110 75 61 85
22 n the right circumstances, new technologies adopted by members of a community will spread by d... more 22 n the right circumstances, new technologies adopted by members of a community will spread by diffusion. One of the most robust findings about innovation diffusion is that shifts from one technology or product to another follow a sigmoid, or cumulative normal, distribution.1–3 Thus, the rate of adoption usually starts low, accelerates until about 50 percent of the community has adopted the technology, then decelerates, eventually approaching zero, as nearly everyone in the community has adopted the technology. Adoption or diffusion also can be characterized as a normal distribution, or bell curve. Using the normal distribution model, Rogers identified five major categories of individual adopters (see Figure 1).4 Many factors affect the rate of adoption, including an innovation’s characteristics and various economic, sociological, organizational, and psychological variables. Understanding the rate of adoption in any given situation requires analyzing factors that may facilitate the...
An Arousal Optimization Model of Lighting Level Preferences: An Interaction of Social Situation and Task Demands
Environment and Behavior, 1989
Abstract Both the lighting level of a setting and the social situation can affect arousal. If ind... more Abstract Both the lighting level of a setting and the social situation can affect arousal. If individuals attempt to maintain an optimal arousal level, then preferred lighting levels for a particular setting should vary with social variables. The purpose of this study was to examine this hypothesis. Male and female subjects (N= 105) were presented with 48 hypothetical situations and were asked to indicate their lighting level preferences for each. Some of the situations involved activities requiring a high degree of visual attention, while the other ...
Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. ... more Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. The present study instead examined preference for lighting levels. Among the reasons for investigating preferences is that preference measures theoretically include a variety of human reactions to lighting, including comfort, aesthetics, and performance. The purposes of Experiment 1 were to obtain preferences for lighting levels, judgments of the importance of lighting levels, and judgments about the desirability of controlling lighting level for 43 behavior settings of college students. The purposes of Experiment 2 were to replicate part of Experiment 1 and extend the research to other common behaviors occurring in the same settings studied in Experiment 1. Results indicated large differences in the variety of lighting preferred for various behaviors and settings. Judgments of importance of lighting level had a quadratic relationship to preferred illumination, that is, importance was greater for behavior settings preferred either dark or bright. Importance and control were strongly linearly related. Implications for I ES standards and future research are discussed.
People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of l... more People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of large buildings where it is not possible to have windows. In some of these situations, people could have `inside windows," that is, windows to another inside space rather than to the outside. Two studies investigated the desirability of inside windows. In the first study, 35 full-time secretaries and 205 students completed a questionnaire about both the desirability of inside windows in a number of situations and the effects of inside windows. Results indicated that inside windows were generally desirable. Secretaries rated inside windows as slightly less desirable than did students. Judgments concerning the effects of inside windows suggested that secretaries may have lower preferences because they tend to focus on the negative effects of inside windows relative to students. There were two settings for which secretaries and students were similar: the office and the library. In the second study, preferred sizes of inside windows were obtained using a model of an office. The 36 subjects indicated that inside windows were generally preferred, but were smaller than conventional windows for comparable spaces. The desire for inside windows, and their size, was greater if the space being viewed had a conventional window.
A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices ... more A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices compensate for the lack of windows. In Experiment 1, students rated the degree to which they perceived various office features to be substitutes for windows. Analyses revealed four general categories of potential window substitutes: other apertures (e.g., skylights), paintings/art, living things (e.g., plants), and panels (e.g., light panels). Experiment 2 supported the external validity of the data in Experiment 1 in that full-time office workers produced virtually identical ratings of window substitutability. Experiment 3 was a field study of 173 offices. Measurements were made of the number and size of windows, number and size of all potential window substitutes, and size of wall space available for pictures. Size was measured in degrees of visual angle from the office workers' chairs. No evidence was obtained to indicate that any of the features measured were more prevalent or larger in offices without windows. Furthermore, power analyses indicated that the study had sufficient power to find such effects. Experiment 4 was designed to investigate other potential reasons for the use of the items that were examined in Experiment 3. Several reasons, such as space personalization, were found to be perceived by office occupants as more important than the desire to compensate for lack of windows.
ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of peo... more ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of people's preferences for skylights. In an attempt to fill this void, three studies were conducted to assess skylight preferences and to explore the theoretical bases of these preferences. In Experiment 1, preferences for skylights varying in size and degree of clarity were made for 14 spaces. Analyses indicated that skylights preferences vary widely across spaces, but they are generally less desirable than windows. Skylights were judged to be particularly desirable in family rooms, living rooms, and kitchens. In Experiment 2, skylight preferences were obtained for 17 spaces. For these spaces, commonness of skylights and reasons for wanting skylights were evaluated by different subjects. One finding was that subjects believed skylights were less common than they would like them to be. Results also indicated that mean skylight preferences are reasonably reliable as well as predictable by both commonness and reasons. Experiment 3 was similar to Experiment 2 except that a within-subjects design was used. The results confirmed the findings of Experiment 2. In addition, they provided more detailed information about the relative importance of commonness and reasons for each space studied. Implications for future research and theory are discussed.
Effects of Setting on Window Preferences and Factors Associated with Those Preferences
Environment and Behavior, 1989
Window preference research on a few settings has found that windows are generally preferred and t... more Window preference research on a few settings has found that windows are generally preferred and that larger windows are preferred over smaller ones. No theoretical model of window preferences, however, has been proposed. The present experiment was designed to investigate window preferences across a large variety of common spaces and to examine reasons orfactors that may underlie these preferences with the ultimate goal of predicting them. Window preferences, in terms of size, number, and degree of transparency were made for 14 common spaces. Subjects then indicated the factors underlying their specific preferences from a list of 18 potential factors. Results showed that both window preferences and factors vary more widely than previous research would indicate. More important, however, it was demonstrated that the amount of windows desired in a space can be reliably predicted by knowing how important specific factors (e.g., having a view or good ventilation) are to individuals in tha...
People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of l... more People prefer to have windows in many spaces. However, there are spaces such as the interior of large buildings where it is not possible to have windows. In some of these situations, people could have `inside windows," that is, windows to another inside space rather than to the outside. Two studies investigated the desirability of inside windows. In the first study, 35 full-time secretaries and 205 students completed a questionnaire about both the desirability of inside windows in a number of situations and the effects of inside windows. Results indicated that inside windows were generally desirable. Secretaries rated inside windows as slightly less desirable than did students. Judgments concerning the effects of inside windows suggested that secretaries may have lower preferences because they tend to focus on the negative effects of inside windows relative to students. There were two settings for which secretaries and students were similar: the office and the library. In the s...
ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of peo... more ABSTRACT Previous research on environmental fenestration has generally neglected the study of people's preferences for skylights. In an attempt to fill this void, three studies were conducted to assess skylight preferences and to explore the theoretical bases of these preferences. In Experiment 1, preferences for skylights varying in size and degree of clarity were made for 14 spaces. Analyses indicated that skylights preferences vary widely across spaces, but they are generally less desirable than windows. Skylights were judged to be particularly desirable in family rooms, living rooms, and kitchens. In Experiment 2, skylight preferences were obtained for 17 spaces. For these spaces, commonness of skylights and reasons for wanting skylights were evaluated by different subjects. One finding was that subjects believed skylights were less common than they would like them to be. Results also indicated that mean skylight preferences are reasonably reliable as well as predictable by both commonness and reasons. Experiment 3 was similar to Experiment 2 except that a within-subjects design was used. The results confirmed the findings of Experiment 2. In addition, they provided more detailed information about the relative importance of commonness and reasons for each space studied. Implications for future research and theory are discussed.
Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. ... more Typically, studies of illumination have emphasized its effects on performance of specific tasks. The present study instead examined preference for lighting levels. Among the reasons for investigating preferences is that preference measures theoretically include a variety of human reactions to lighting, including comfort, aesthetics, and performance. The purposes of Experiment 1 were to obtain preferences for lighting levels, judgments of the importance of lighting levels, and judgments about the desirability of controlling lighting level for 43 behavior settings of college students. The purposes of Experiment 2 were to replicate part of Experiment 1 and extend the research to other common behaviors occurring in the same settings studied in Experiment 1. Results indicated large differences in the variety of lighting preferred for various behaviors and settings. Judgments of importance of lighting level had a quadratic relationship to preferred illumination, that is, importance was gr...
Windowlessness in the Workplace: A Reexamination of the Compensation Hypothesis
Environment and Behavior, 1993
A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices ... more A series of studies was performed to explore the hypothesis that employees in windowless offices compensate for the lack of windows. In Experiment 1, students rated the degree to which they perceived various office features to be substitutes for windows. Analyses revealed four general categories of potential window substitutes: other apertures (e.g., skylights), paintings/art, living things (e.g., plants), and panels (e.g., light panels). Experiment 2 supported the external validity of the data in Experiment 1 in that full-time office workers produced virtually identical ratings of window substitutability. Experiment 3 was a field study of 173 offices. Measurements were made of the number and size of windows, number and size of all potential window substitutes, and size of wall space available for pictures. Size was measured in degrees of visual angle from the office workers' chairs. No evidence was obtained to indicate that any of the features measured were more prevalent or la...
Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 1990
Table 1 Where Students Remember Spending Time Females Males Significant Gender Space Freq. % Freq... more Table 1 Where Students Remember Spending Time Females Males Significant Gender Space Freq. % Freq. % Diff. (2) Classroom 110 75 61 85
22 n the right circumstances, new technologies adopted by members of a community will spread by d... more 22 n the right circumstances, new technologies adopted by members of a community will spread by diffusion. One of the most robust findings about innovation diffusion is that shifts from one technology or product to another follow a sigmoid, or cumulative normal, distribution.1–3 Thus, the rate of adoption usually starts low, accelerates until about 50 percent of the community has adopted the technology, then decelerates, eventually approaching zero, as nearly everyone in the community has adopted the technology. Adoption or diffusion also can be characterized as a normal distribution, or bell curve. Using the normal distribution model, Rogers identified five major categories of individual adopters (see Figure 1).4 Many factors affect the rate of adoption, including an innovation’s characteristics and various economic, sociological, organizational, and psychological variables. Understanding the rate of adoption in any given situation requires analyzing factors that may facilitate the...
An Arousal Optimization Model of Lighting Level Preferences: An Interaction of Social Situation and Task Demands
Environment and Behavior, 1989
Abstract Both the lighting level of a setting and the social situation can affect arousal. If ind... more Abstract Both the lighting level of a setting and the social situation can affect arousal. If individuals attempt to maintain an optimal arousal level, then preferred lighting levels for a particular setting should vary with social variables. The purpose of this study was to examine this hypothesis. Male and female subjects (N= 105) were presented with 48 hypothetical situations and were asked to indicate their lighting level preferences for each. Some of the situations involved activities requiring a high degree of visual attention, while the other ...
Uploads
Papers by Darrell Butler