Assessing the post-COVID interaction between indoor environmental quality and occupants within educational buildings: A structural equation modeling approach

Abstract

It is well-acknowledged that indoor environmental quality (IEQ) affects different aspects of occupants' lives, such as satisfaction, performance, and well-being. This acknowledgement is a result of extensive studies investigating IEQ interaction with occupants within different spaces, such as offices, commercial buildings, and homes. What is still missing are two aspects that IEQ studies should consider: (a) the post-COVID-19 era and the resulting anti-measures (COVID measures) and (b) the interaction of IEQ with occupants in academic libraries. This study aims to analyze the effects of COVID measures on the relationship between IEQ and occupants' satisfaction (learning performance), as well as their visiting habits at one of the largest academic libraries in Asia. To this end, two scenarios are developed to compare the effects of IEQ on occupants with and without COVID measures. This paper aims to address how COVID measures will shape the relationship between the IEQ of an academic library and its users’ satisfaction and visiting habits. This relationship is investigated using structural equation modeling based on 509 face-to-face surveys completed over the course of 4 months. Results suggest that COVID measures will produce a significant relationship between IEQ and satisfaction; however, higher satisfaction is reported when COVID measures are not applied. Both models show no significant relationship between IEQ and visiting habits. The proposed model will help in defining construction guidelines for libraries and educational buildings that promote IEQ conditions in the post-COVID era.