An Analysis of Relationships between the Green Building Certification System for Multi-family Housing (GBCS-MF) Scores and Resident Perception Ratings in Korea

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the relationships between the scores of the Green Building Certification System for Multifamily Housing (GBCS-MF) and resident perception ratings in South Korea. Sustainability has become important in architecture. Several building environmental assessments systems have been developed and used to promote sustainable developments in different parts of the world. The existing building environmental assessment systems have contributed to an understanding of building related environmental issues. However, the current systems only predict building features and performance in terms of interest to professionals. The systems do not recognize the users of buildings assessed by such systems. More research is needed to understand the users’ points of view and to identify effective interventions for the current systems. To investigate the relationships between the GBCS-MF scores and resident perception ratings of building features designed to meet the GBCS-MF criteria, various sets of data were collected and analyzed, including the GBCS-MF score cards, resident surveys, and focus group interviews with professionals and residents. Results show that residents in the GBCS-MF apartments have low awareness of the system. There are differences between the presence of GBCS-MF features and resident perceptions of those features. Additional differences are found between the expectations of professionals and resident ratings on GBCS-MF features. As a result, promoting a dialogue between multiple stakeholders is important in developing meaningful developments for the systems’ future. This research has answered a call to provide post-occupancy evaluations of building environmental assessment systems and has widened and deepened the field. Suggestions for future development imply that perspectives of different end users need to be examined from varied research angles and methodologies, including increasing the number of and diversifying research participants and buildings, such as facility management staff and non-GBCS-MF certified apartments. The present study is meaningful as a first time exploratory look at what a building environmental assessment system is like in Korea and how the system functions in that local setting.