Jennifer A. Veitch

National Research Council Canada | NRC · Institute for Research in Construction (IRC)

This report is a comprehensive review of the scientific knowledge acquired over the last ten years on the effects of solid state lighting (SSL) on human health. The report considers issues that concern both large fractions of the population as well as small sensitive groups of people. The report is primarily intended to support policymakers, offeri...

Health and well-being of people is directly influenced by the indoor environmental quality of the buildings they occupy. Noise exposure, for example, is not only a cause of annoyance but it is established as a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases and it is a cause of sleep disturbance. As part of a broader research project foc...

Background There is no consensus on reporting light characteristics in studies investigating non-visual responses to light. This project aimed to develop a reporting checklist for laboratory-based investigations on the impact of light on non-visual physiology. Methods A four-step modified Delphi process (three questionnaire-based feedback rounds a...

Temporal light modulation (TLM) describes variations in light output from a light source or lighting system and can be a characteristic of their normal operation. TLM at 100 or 120 Hz can disrupt eye movements and reduce visual performance compared to 40 kHz, but little is known of the effects between those frequencies. Such evidence could provide...

The activity-based workplace (ABWs) provides a variety of spaces where work can be performed., Employees have no assigned seats but are expected to change their locations in the workplace to suit their activities. We conducted a systematic review of the literature evaluating this strategy, identifying 23 investigations between 2000 and 2020 in whic...

Light exposure has a profound impact on human physiology and behaviour. For example, light exposure at the wrong time can disrupt our circadian rhythms and acutely suppress the production of melatonin. In turn, appropriately timed light exposure can support circadian photoentrainment. Beginning with the discovery that melatonin production is acutel...

The higher the colour fidelity of a light source, the lower its luminous efficacy of radiation because the light source spectrum must deviate from V(λ) to deliver the higher fidelity. Two experiments probed the trade-off between energy efficiency and colour quality. Experiment 1 required participants to simultaneously view pairs of light sources di...

Well-being in the built environment is a topic that features frequently in building standards and certification schemes, in scholarly articles and in the general press. However, despite this surge in attention, there are still many questions on how to effectively design, measure, and nurture well-being in the built environment. Bringing together ex...

Final Report for a research project that examined visual perception associated with temporal light modulation, and more specifically the stroboscopic effect.

The advent of LED lighting has renewed concern about the possible visual, neurobiological, and performance and cognition effects of cyclic variations in lighting system luminous flux (temporal light modulation). The stroboscopic visibility measure (SVM) characterises the temporal light modulation signal to predict the visibility of the stroboscopic...

https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/psychologycareers/chapter/chapter-13-environmental-psychology/

The judgment of thermal comfort is a cognitive process which is influenced by physical, psychological and other factors. Prior studies have shown that occupants, who are generally satisfied with many non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality, are more likely to be satisfied with thermal conditions as well. This paper presents a novel a...

‘Better buildings’ are intended to improve employee well-being and other important organizational productivity metrics, but such effects have been notoriously difficult to quantify convincingly. This paper uses new, multi-metric approaches to develop a framework for valuing these effects. The organizational productivity metrics considered are: abse...

Applied lighting research is inherently interdisciplinary. Any one study in which investigators seek to understand the effects of light may involve expertise drawn from fields as varied as psychology, physiology, photobiology, vision science, engineering, physics, horticulture, and architecture. Despite differences in the specifics of research meth...

Lighting on demand (LOD) is a high-resolution energy-efficient lighting control technique that dynamically adjusts the lights in a space according to its occupancy. It controls the lights in the space individually such that the area that receives a higher light level is determined by the location of the occupant(s) and, in some cases, by their task...

There is increasing interest in understanding how office accommodation affects organizational productivity. Data on metrics of engagement, job satisfaction, job performance and facility complaints for thousands of employees (n = 14,569) of a large Canadian financial organization were analysed to explore differences in outcomes between those working...

Although light is defined as electromagnetic radiation that provides the stimulus for vision, we now know conclusively that ocular detection of this signal also has many other physiological and psychological effects in humans and other organisms. This knowledge has led some to argue for rapid adoption of lighting recommendations that incorporate “l...

Both lighting technology and our understanding of the relationship between light and human health have advanced rapidly in recent years. The latter needs to be carefully evaluated, particularly as longer‐lasting light sources enter the market.

For many people, the correct perception of the colors of objects is an important part of life, and today it is being threatened by misinformed policy-making and associated business decisions.Some conservationists and lamp manufacturers have concluded that the accurate color rendering provided by ordinary incandescent lamps is an unaffordable luxury...

Two large and detailed field studies of the effect of office environment parameters on aspects of environmental and job satisfaction were conducted. The first study focused on open-plan offices in nine conventional buildings, whereas the second encompassed open-plan and private offices in 24 buildings (12 green and 12 conventional). The data collec...

As light-emitting diode (LED) light sources mature, lighting designers will be able to deliver white light with a variety of spectral power distributions and a variety of color rendering properties. This experiment examined the effects of three spectral power distributions (SPDs) that were matched in illuminance and chromaticity on three measures o...

A flickering light source resolves into a continuous perception (critical flicker frequency, CFF) at -60-100 Hz but at higher frequencies has neural effects that are not consciously reportable . We do not know the frequency of the upper limit of detection , but electroretinogram data show responses as high as 200 Hz. Visual performance and eye move...

Previous research has demonstrated that individual personal control over light level benefits individuals and organizations. As a first step toward testing whether light source spectrum choices—which are possible with light emitting diode (LED) systems—offer similar benefits, we examined preferences for various spectra in a scale model of an office...

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Fundamental research into the effects of light on biology, behavior, and health is a rapidly-advancing field. As the lighting community learns more about these research results, interest in potential lighting applications is growing. This paper sets out issues for consideration in three areas: research areas in which knowledge is needed; topics tha...

40 participants viewed a series of greyscale images of a typical non-daylit, open-plan partitioned office, and rated them for attractiveness. The image was projected onto a screen at realistic luminances and 54% of full size. The images in the series were geometrically identical, but the luminances of important surfaces were independently manipulat...

Veitch and Newsham proposed a behaviorally-based model for lighting quality research, in which individually-based processes mediate the relationships between luminous conditions and such behavioral outcomes as task performance, mood, social behavior, aesthetic judgements and satisfaction. This review paper summarizes the state of knowledge concerni...

The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History (NMAH) has embarked on a three-year project to preserve the Star-Spangled Banner Flag. The project consisted of using infrared spectrometry to analyze small samples of the flag's fibers and a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) camera capable of photographing large areas to dete...

Illuminating engineers, lighting designers and others have long debated the importance of providing an artificial light source that mimics the characteristics of natural light. Several products are available that purport to provide more natural light, of which retrofit plastic filters are one. Product testimonials praising these products abound, bu...

Organisations and their facilities managers are under pressure to reduce the space allocation to individuals in open-plan offices, as a means to reduce costs. The reduced space allocation, however, risks creating an unpleasant working environment, either directly through the creation of adverse physical conditions (e.g., more noise, added obstructi...

This paper describes the factor structure of an office environmental satisfaction measure and develops a model linking environmental and job satisfaction. The data were collected as part of the Cost-effective Open-Plan Environments (COPE) project, in a field study that also included local physical measurements of each participant's workstation. The...

A post-occupancy evaluation (POE) of 12 green and 12 conventional office buildings across Canada and the northern United States was conducted. Occupants (N = 2545) completed an online questionnaire related to environmental satisfaction, job satisfaction and organizational commitment, health and well-being, environmental attitudes, and commuting. In...

Among those concerned with practical matters of office design, demonstrations that the work environment affects employees’ well-being and work behaviors are thought to be important to support client decision making. Veitch, Newsham, Boyce, and Jones developed a conceptual model in which lighting appraisal and visual capabilities predicted aesthetic...

The rewards for service to a professional association are many: reputation-building, power, and influence; skill development; networking opportunities; feelings of mastery and belonging. These serve to maintain the behaviours despite occasional dull or routine tasks required in the service role. Voluntary service of this kind is essential to the ma...

Our common experience is that windows are desirable; in recent years science has begun to explain why. The last reviews of this literature were published a decade ago; therefore, we felt the time to be right for a comprehensive review and for the development of a research agenda to move activity forward in directions that would have practical appli...

This survey is one task under the NRC-IRC project “Development of Guidelines for Effective Solar Shadings of Residential Windows for Energy Efficiency and Occupant Comfort” (44-B3243). The purpose of this project is to develop guidelines for the use of internal reflective, mid-pane, and external insulating solar shadings on residential windows to r...

This handbook is the first to comprehensively study the interdependent fields of environmental and conservation psychology. In doing so, it seeks to map the rapidly growing field of conservation psychology and its relationship to environmental psychology. The Oxford Handbook of Environmental and Conservation Psychology includes basic research on en...

Background LED (Light Emitting Diode) based lighting has been predicted to reach as much as 60% share of the global lighting market in the next 10 years. It is characterized by exceptional lifetime and excellent energy efficiency. However potential health concerns have been associated with flicker in some LED lighting technologies. Aims/Objectives/...

This handbook is the first to comprehensively study the interdependent fields of environmental and conservation psychology. In doing so, it seeks to map the rapidly growing field of conservation psychology and its relationship to environmental psychology. The Oxford Handbook of Environmental and Conservation Psychology includes basic research on en...

A 2004 CIE report introduced the concept of a necessary daily light dose that contemporary life in industrialized countries does not deliver, but to which better use of architectural daylighting could make a valuable contribution. Nearly a decade has passed since the last substantive reviews of the health and well-being effects of daylight and wind...

A comprehensive post-occupancy investigation of the performance of “green” and “conventional” office buildings has been completed. The study included occupant surveys and physical building and energy use data collected from 24 buildings (12 green, 12 conventional) across Canada and the northern US. Occupants completed a questionnaire with items rel...

Une étude exhaustive de la performance des immeubles de bureaux « verts » ou écologiques par rapport aux immeubles dits « conventionnels » a été réalisée, une fois les bâtiments occupés. L’étude en question comprenait des enquêtes auprès des occupants, ainsi que des données sur les caractéristiques physiques des bâtiments et leur consommation d’éne...

For solid-state lighting to make a major dent in the lighting energy budget will require light sources and luminaires that are more efficacious than the existing technology, and a reason for building owners and tenants to change to an initially expensive, new and unfamiliar technology. New luminaire designs and operation modes using the unique char...

People spend much of their waking time in their workplaces (approximately 33% on a weekly basis), which raises the possibility that the conditions they experience at work influence their health and well-being. The workplace design literature has given scant attention to mental health outcomes, instead focusing on healthy populations. Conversely, th...

Office employees spend a lot of time inside buildings, where the physical conditions influence their well-being and indirectly influence their employers' business performance. With data from a field study conducted in the Netherlands in April to May 2003, we used path analysis to further elucidate the relationship between personal (gender and seaso...

The IEEE Standards Working Group, IEEE PAR1789 “Recommending practices for modulating current in High Brightness LEDs for mitigating health risks to viewers” has been formed to advise the lighting industry, ANSI/NEMA, IEC, EnergyStar and other standards groups about the emerging concern of flicker in LED lighting. This paper introduces power electr...

Thirty-nine participants viewed six interior scenes in an office/laboratory building and rated them for brightness, uniformity, pleasantness, and glare. The scenes were viewed in three presentation modes: participants saw the real space, and images of the spaces on a 17-inch computer monitor in both conventional and high dynamic range (HDR) mode. H...

This was a naturally-occurring field experiment, comparing employee responses to recessed parabolic-louvered luminaires, and workstation-specific individually-controllable suspended direct/indirect luminaires, with some variation in furnishings and surface reflectances. All occupants of three buildings were invited to complete an online questionnai...

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This paper suggests a new method of objectively deriving illuminance recommendations for VDT offices. An experiment in a mock-up office space gave occupants control over dimmable lighting circuits after a day working under constant, pseudo-random lighting conditions (for example, desktop illuminance during the day varied between 100 to 700 lux). Da...

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As part of ongoing lighting quality research, lighting experts in design and research were given the opportunity to judge the lighting quality of nine lighting designs for a windowless open-plan office. The nine lighting conditions are defined by a 3 x 3 matrix of levels of lighting power density and lighting quality as defined by designers (design...

In the late 1990s, CIE began to shift its emphasis from lighting for visibility to a more broad definition of lighting quality, encompassing human needs, architectural integration, and economic constraints (including energy) [41]. Human needs, as defined here, include lighting that is appropriate to maintain good health, as well as lighting for vis...

Office employees spend a lot of time inside buildings, where the physical conditions influence their well-being and indirectly influence their employers? business performance. With data from a field study conducted in the Netherlands in April-May 2003, we used path analysis to further elucidate the relationship between personal (gender and seasonal...

The prospect of installing energy efficiency measures in buildings leaves some people afraid that they will ?freeze in the dark?. Surveys of employers show that they are reluctant to make changes that they fear could adversely affect employee performance and satisfaction. Fortunately, present-day technology exists that can satisfy occupants and the...

We conducted a field study in a deep-plan office building with cubicle accommodation and large windows. Workstation-specific suspended direct-indirect (WSDI-C) luminaires with occupancy sensors, daylight-linked dimming, and individual controls were located centrally in each workstation provided lighting over most of the floor area. Part of one floo...

Physical and questionnaire data were collected from 95 workstations at an open-plan office building in Michigan, US. The physical measurements encompassed thermal, lighting, and acoustic variables, furniture dimensions, and an assessment of potential exterior view. Occupants answered a detailed questionnaire concerning their environmental and job s...

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Participants (N=126) spent a day in a full-scale office laboratory, completing questionnaires and standard office tasks. Some participants experienced typical constant lighting and ventilation conditions, whereas others were given personal control over the dimming of lighting in their workstation and over the flow rate of air from a ceiling-based n...

Canadians spend most of their time indoors. There is mounting evidence that the conditions they experience ? air, light, sound, interior design, materials, and architectural features ? influence their health. These effects may disproportionately occur in vulnerable populations, defined by individual, socioeconomic, cultural or geographic characteri...

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Communication between designer and client is a critical component of the design process, and still images have been part of the process for decades. Successful projects rest on realistic portrayals of scenes, whether they are photographs of real places or renderings of places yet to be built. La communication entre concepteur et client constitue un...

Evidence is mounting that conditions in buildings can influence health; current topics include indoor exposures to lighting, noise, and chemicals; the availability of windows; and, overall housing quality. These findings have had limited influence on building design, construction, and operation, in part because of limited interaction between the re...

In two experiments in a simulated office space, temporary office personnel worked under one of six lighting conditions for a day. A previous paper reported the results of statistical tests for lighting conditions effects on perceptions, feelings, and task performance. This paper reports mediated regression analyses testing the linked mechanisms by...

Abstract Abstract We applied binary logistic regression techniques to data collected from 779 participants in a field study of open-plan (‘cubicle’) offices conducted in nine buildings. Independent variables were physical conditions in the workplace, and dependent variables were derived from occupant satisfaction measures; personal characteristics...

NRC Institute for Research in Construction conducted a study to show the energy saving from individual control over lighting. The study found that the people with ability to adjust their light levels to suit their preferences are satisfied with the lighting. Despite of four lighting designs and four illuminance levels 118 participants of the study...

In this parametric study, the influence of office design variables on occupant satisfaction was examined, using high dynamic range (HDR) images as stimuli. The setting was an open plan office with cubicles defined by modular systems furniture. Photographs were taken of the view afforded to the occupant sitting in the second row in from the window....

Good lighting balances the needs of humans, economic and environmental issues, and architectural design. Good lighting provides for the needed level of visual performance, but also determines spatial appearance, provides for safety, and contributes to human health and well-being. Our daily exposure to light and darkness influences circadian cycles...

The National Research Council is Canada's principal research and development agency. Its 20 institutes are structured to address interdisciplinary problems for industrial sectors, and to provide the necessary scientific infrastructure, such as the national science library. Behavioural scientists are active in five institutes: Biological Sciences, B...

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