Abstract

This study aims to identify outdoor thermal comfort (OTC) differences between two ethnic groups (Chinese (CG) and Pakistani (PG)) with different thermal perception and thermal adaption backgrounds on a campus in Xi'an, a city in the cold region of China. A thermal comfort questionnaire was conducted simultaneous with meteorological measurements in five typical campus open spaces during winter, spring and summer. The Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) was approximated as a thermal index to detect differences between CG and PG at a neutral temperature, neutral temperature range, preferred temperature, thermal acceptability range and thermal adaptation behaviors. Results demonstrated that: (1) Clothing insulation of PG was lower than that of CG among seasons. (2) The globe temperature (Tg) was the primary correlate of thermal comfort for both groups (ρCG = 0.866 and ρPG = 0.744). (3) The neutral UTCI of PG (22.4 °C) was higher than that of CG (20.4 °C). The preferred UTCI of PG (19.8 °C) was 3.5 °C lower than that of CG (23.3 °C). The neutral UTCI range of PG (16.2–28.6 °C) was higher and wider compared to that of CG (15.1–25.7 °C). (4) The thermal acceptability range of PG (12.9–28.9 °C) was wider than that of CG (15.8–28.5 °C). (5) PG managed thermal discomfort with clothing and hot/cold drinks as appropriate, while CG preferred changing location and appropriate clothing. Our results show that cross-cultural differences in thermal comfort should affect recommendations for open spaces design on multicultural campuses in China's cold region.

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