Adaptive Outdoor Thermal Comfort at an Urban Park in Malaysia

Abstract

This paper clarifies the perceptive and adaptive mechanisms involved in an outdoor thermal comfort in hot, and humid condition. The method of the study was through microclimate measurement coupled with structured interviews of urban park users. The objective of this study is to identify the impacts of weather and personal factors on respondents’ perceptual and sensation estimations. The findings on the significant influences of microclimate parameters and personal factors on the participants’ perceptions of outdoor urban places are discussed. This study shows the respondents' thermal adaptation from physiological and psychological perspectives. The significance of the findings showed the importance of a sustainable urban park for continued use by future communities.

Keywords: Outdoor Thermal Comfort; Urban Park; Microclimate; Hot and Humid

eISSN 2398-4295 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.