Factors Significant to Thermal Comfort Within Residential Neighborhoods of Ibadan Metropolis and Preferences in Adult Residents’ Use of Spaces

The study examined the significance of five sets of variablesclassified under personal characteristics, adaptive actions, climatic factors, buildingspatial characteristics, and neighborhood location characteristics in the determinationof indoor thermal comfort and the impact of spatial comfort on residents’ preferences inspace use. A thermal comfort survey was conducted among residents of 528 buildings in 12selected residential neighborhoods of Ibadan metropolis in Nigeria. The impact of theurban microclimate on the building spaces was found significant. Indoor comfortassessment varied according to the different building design typology. The location andbuilding characteristics were found to influence the indoor comfort of respondents. Itwas found that there were differences in air temperature measured within the spaces inthe buildings. The thermal assessment of respondents for different spaces in theirrespective buildings also varied. There was very strong correlation between the mostcomfortable spaces, the most used spaces, and the first choice spaces voted byrespondents at different periods of the day. Residents utilized adaptive actions andexhibited thermal consideration in the use of spaces. Adaptive movement from space tospace due to variation in spatial comfort was confirmed in the study