Are we adequately accounting for human factors in analyses of thermal comfort studies?

Mishra, Asit Kumar; Wargocki, P.; O'Reilly, E. J.

Are we adequately accounting for human factors in analyses of thermal comfort studies?

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Files

1-s2.0-S0378778825010655-main.pdf(1.85 MB)

Published Version

Date

2025-11-15

Authors

Mishra, Asit Kumar

Wargocki, P.

O'Reilly, E. J.

Publisher

Elsevier B.V.

Published Version

10.1016/j.enbuild.2025.116335

Abstract

We discuss thermal comfort research data analysis, focusing on the nature of human responses, response scales, and human-built environment interactions. The goal is to highlight methods that provide an appreciation of human responses and inter-individual variability. We posit that there should be reduced focus on finding correlations and looking for “one size fits all” answers. Our position is illustrated by sample data from the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II. Through this work, we want to promote dialogue on how data analysis can retain a strong mathematical basis while remaining true to the human responses regarding thermal comfort.

Keywords

Occupant centric , Ordinal data , Survey response , Thermal comfort , Thermal sensation votes , [PublicHealth]

Citation

Mishra, A K, Wargocki, P & O'Reilly, E J 2025, 'Are we adequately accounting for human factors in analyses of thermal comfort studies?', Energy and Buildings, vol. 347, 116335, pp. 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2025.116335