No description available.

No description available.

The Hillside Fourplex, a structurally innovative housing unit which won a HUD competition “Building Value Into Housing”, was conducted in Blacksburg, VA, in 1982. The purpose of this study was to evaluate public acceptance of the unit as evidenced at open house sessions, to evaluate user satisfaction as evidence of livability, and to make recommendations for design changes before replication. An 80 item questionnaire, with a five point acceptable/non-acceptable range, was used to assess public acceptance. User satisfaction was assessed with a self-administered questionnaire containing sections related to residents’ opinions of exterior characteristics, interior characteristics, innovative features, and design decisions. The questionnaire, a modification of the one used to assess public acceptance (with the addition of a five point not important/important and a five point dissatisfied/satisfied range), was administered to student residents–as a pre-test (before occupancy), as an initial post-test (after 4 weeks occupancy), and as a second post-test (after 20 weeks occupancy). A matrix was created to combine responses to unimportant-important and dissatisfied-satisfied ratings. Descriptive and statistical analysis indicated a general acceptance of and satisfaction with the fourplex; however, problems were noted with the heating systems and audile privacy. / M.S.

Thesis. 1976. M.Arch.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. / Microfiche copy available in Archives and Rotch. / Bibliography: leaves 279-285. / M.Arch.

No description available.

No description available.

Call number: LD2668 .P7 1975 B76

The purposes of this study were (a) to compare open plan housing to semi-open and closed-plan designs on perception of crowding and reactions to crowding and (b) formulate a theoretical basis for explaining housing and human behavior. The objectives were to determine (a) if the number of people who could occupy open-plan housing without feeling crowded would differ from the number who could occupy semi-open or closed plans and (b) if the crowding accommodation time and reactions to crowding would be influenced by floor plan design. Analysis of Variance statistical techniques were used. Forty-five women who worked outside the home and occupied households of four or more persons with at least two children under the age of 18 were were randomly assigned to one of the three floor plan groups. Three identical models constructed with varying degrees of openness to 1" = 1'-0" scale represented the public areas of a dwelling approximately 1,150 square feet in size. Figures and furniture were constructed to the same scale. Subjects independently placed figures in the models in four typical family activity scenarios until one more figure was perceived as one too many. The scenarios, which represented goal-directed and non-goal directed activities, varied in the level of social interaction that was anticipated. After figures were placed to simulate crowding, subjects were asked questions related to their attitudes and responses to crowding. At the .05 level of significance, subjects placed fewer figures in the open plan model than in the semi-open and closed plans when given a scenario in which low levels of social interaction (privacy) were desirable. Significant differences were also observed among the four different scenarios. When scenarios represented goal-directed behaviors, fewer figures were placed, accommodation time was less, and reaction to crowding was greater than when scenarios represented unstructured social activities. The results suggest that small dwellings constructed for families with children should have some division of space in the living, dining, and kitchen area to support low-social interaction and goal-directed behaviors. Further research is needed to determine if uncontrollable high social interaction within a dwelling reduces goal-directed behavior. / Ph. D.

This thesis outlines and undertakes a phenomenological investigation of dwelling in Harlan County, Kentucky, which is located in the central Appalachian coal region. After comparing the phenomenological method of inquiry to other methods of landscape evaluation, this method proved to be a useful tool for understanding dwelling, a concept that is difficult to define or pinpoint through the other methods. Experiencing the front yards of homes in this county was deemed an appropriate vehicle for undertaking this study. Empirical findings, derived from the phenomenological method of inquiry, were used to elucidate the emergence of patterns concerning dwelling. A conserver pattern emerged from the patterns observed. This conclusion is used to support the recommendation that phenomenological investigations be used in the classroom to aid students in the process of the reading the landscape for clues to more appropriate design decisions for dwelling. / Master of Landscape Architecture