Assessing and valuing restorative space on campus: A comparison between the UK and Hong Kong

This paper examines: students' assessment and rating of restorative space on campus including the individual components of such environments; students' willingness to pay for restorative environments and a comparison between responses in the UK and Hong Kong. In this exploratory phase pilot surveys were undertaken on two campuses: Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Loughborough University. Students were asked to rate the importance of and their satisfaction with a number of components of restorative space. A stated choice experiment was conducted within the survey using paired comparisons of visual stimuli which varied in terms of the presence of green plants; the presence of water; view of nature or a built environment and willingness to pay. The findings of this phase are of interest in indicating that respondents do value the presence of natural greenery and views in interior space. The sound environment, seating and lighting were seen as the most important features of restorative space in both Universities; whilst area of disagreement included greenery, more important in the Hong Kong sample and the temperature, more important in Loughborough. There was a high level of consensus on the sounds that contribute most to a restorative environment namely, trees or leaves, wind, water and music. The results will also feed into the second phase of the work will be lab based to enable the presentation of audio and visual stimuli together.