Evaluation of occupants’ well-being and perception towards indoor environmental quality in Malaysia affordable housing

• Main Authors: Kamaruzzaman, Syahrul Nizam, Azmal, Ainur Mardiha
• Format: Article
• Published: Emerald 2019
• Subjects: TH Building construction
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/24177/; https://doi.org/10.1108/JFM-11-2017-0070
• Institution: Universiti Malaya

Purpose: This paper aims to identify the indoor environmental quality in an affordable housing, as well as the health condition of users. Furthermore, it aims to find the relationship between quality of the indoor environment (IEQ) and sick building syndrome (SBS) and the satisfaction level of the occupants towards the IEQ factor, as well as the importance of the factors in the occupants’ view. Additionally, the purpose of this pilot study is to validate the questionnaire and identify the possible outcome of this research for the main study. Design/methodology/approach: There are a few methods to achieve the objective of this paper: first is by literature review and second is by a survey. There are two types of survey made: observation survey and questionnaire survey. The purpose of observation survey is to survey the surrounding and the condition of the apartments, while questionnaire survey was distributed to the respondents in the affordable housing area. Next, is analysis and discussion of the survey, and finally, summary. Findings: Aside from achieving the validity of the questionnaire survey, the results of the survey have found that the respondents are dissatisfied with the noise and glare level, as well as the amount of artificial lighting in their unit. Additionally, they have rated health, ventilation and amount of air movement as the most important IEQ factors. More importantly, the occupants have experienced the symptoms of SBS and the health condition of the building occupants. The results show that the most frequent symptoms affected the respondents are fatigue, dizziness and a headache. Originality/value: This paper has indicated the IEQ in the affordable housing and identifies the health risk of occupants, specifically in Malaysia. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited.