Journal of Iranian Architecture & Urbanism(JIAU)

Abstract Extended Abstract Background and Objectives: Place identity is the symbolic-emotional aspect of belonging to a place, often associated with positive emotions. It reflects an individual’s emotional attachment to a place where they perceive it as integral to their identity. Studies related to place identity include different scales of human habitation from house to neighborhood and city. Among these, living in a house holds significant influence over human identity. The emotional connection fostered by the house can shape an individual’s sense of place identity. Since the provision of human ideals in various fields arouses positive emotions, paying attention to the ideals of place can also be considered as the basis for creating an emotional attachment. As the house represents a significant place, its essential components can be analyzed to understand the factors influencing place identity. Thus, this study aims to identify and explore the components that contribute to place identity within the context of the house. By viewing the house space as a “place” and recognizing the importance of emotional attachment, the research seeks to explain how each component influences an individual’s sense of place identity.
Methods: In this study, in order to investigate the effective components of place identity, based on the basic concepts and by reviewing the literature, a theoretical model has been developed and analyzed during various stages. So, in the first step, a measurement scale was developed to measure the hypothetical model, and its validity and reliability were evaluated using data from a cross-sectional survey, alongside confirmatory factor analysis. The participants of the research are residents of different residential of Ardabil urban fabric, including old fabrics (historical areas), newly built settlements and peripheral regions. Subsequently, the relationships proposed in the hypothetical model were examined through structural factor analysis to assess the model’s fit. In the final stage of the experimental process, the final structural model was formulated by eliminating non-significant relationships. The model’s fit indices were then evaluated, and the factors influencing place identity, along with their mode of influence, were determined based on the finalized model”.
Findings: In the final structural model, all relationships were found to be significant, with the chi-square ratio (78.011) to its degree of freedom (45) equating to 1.734. Additionally, the fit indices indicated a good fit for the model, with RMSEA at 0.050, GFI at 0.959, AGFI at 0.959, CFI at 0.982, NFI at 0.958, TLI at 0.973, and SRMR at 0.0489. These results collectively suggest the model’s suitability. Furthermore, the model explained 24% of the variance in place identity, with significant proportions of variance explained for various aspects of house conformity with ideals, including beauty (46%), facilities (41%), social status (39%), family relationships (38%), beliefs and values (29%), and spaciousness (12%). Also, according to the findings, “compliance with ideals in terms of family relationships” and “compliance with ideals in terms of social status” have direct and positive effects on the level of “place identity” respectively. The biggest indirect effect on the level of “place identity” are caused by the “compliance with ideals in terms of facilities”, and the “conformity to ideals in terms of Spaciousness” respectively. Also, the greatest effect on the level of “place identity” was attributed to the “compliance with ideals in terms of family relationships”, which was significantly influenced by the “compliance with ideals in terms of facilities” and through that, by “compliance with ideals in terms of spaciousness.
Conclusion: In conclusion, the analysis suggests that alignment between residents’ ideals and various aspects of the house’s physical structure, activities, and concepts (substantive components of the house) significantly impacts their place identity. Achieving satisfactory family relationships and favorable social status emerged as particularly influential factors. Improving these factors requires meeting residents’ ideals in terms of facilities, thereby enhancing functional satisfaction, which, in turn, is dependent on the house’s conformity with ideals regarding spaciousness”.

Abstract Extended Abstract
Background and Objectives: Increasing fossil fuel consumption, on the one hand, along with their non-renewable nature, escalating costs, and the destructive environmental and economic effects of energy consumption, on the other hand, increase the need to use passive systems in buildings. One of the effective solutions to reduce energy consumption and consumption of fossil fuels in the building and also to reduce its adverse environmental effects (increasing greenhouse gas emissions) is the use of passive energy. The facade of residential buildings, as the main mediator between indoor and outdoor space, is an important element in controlling sunlight to the interior and reducing energy consumption. Two important strategies to improve the thermal performance of the building facade include shading devices that reduce annual energy consumption and provide better protection against glare. The second solution aims to investigate the effect of heat transfer or heat resistance of materials used in the building facade by controlling the effects of solar radiation and designing the facade under climate conditions, and reducing the heat transfer by choosing the right materials that can reduce the amount of domestic energy demand. The shape of the building, the orientation of the building, its external and internal walls and materials, the thermal insulation of the facade, the dimensions of the window, the ratio of the window to the wall, and the external shading device can be introduced as effective parameters in reducing energy consumption. Improving the performance of building facades is possible through facade materials, shading devices, and window-to-wall ratio structure. It is important to carry out practical investigations into the thermal efficiency of building facades in order to decrease the amount of energy used for cooling and heating buildings, which represents a significant portion of the world’s energy consumption. As a result, an architectural strategy that focuses on morphology (specifically, architectural morphology) should be examined.
Methods: In the hot and humid climate of Bushehr, the most significant climatic condition is excessive heat. Therefore, it is crucial to research climate-based solutions that can manage the transmission of undesirable heat and lessen the cooling requirements. This study focuses on exploring the thermal efficiency and the transfer of heat caused by solar radiation through building facades in the hot and humid climate of Bushehr. Additionally, it examines the impact of facade design strategies inspired by Bushehr’s native architecture on decreasing the indoor temperature of the building. The research variables that were examined include wooden shading devices (horizontal, vertical, lattice), porches, deep windows, facade materials, and window-to-wall ratio. Each variable has an effect on various types of energy consumption, such as electricity, heat, heating energy, and cooling, which were analyzed in the study. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between independent and dependent variables and analyze their impact on each other. The study involved simulating each building for all twelve months of the year. This simulation included assessing the amount of solar radiation absorbed by building surfaces, its transfer to the interior, and the resulting cooling load demand. The findings are presented through separate diagrams. In the first step, the behavioral pattern of the building facade with respect to the north-south openness was examined to control and reduce the amount of sunlight received and also to reduce the indoor air temperature subsequently, the study extracted general patterns from indigenous facade components that were related to the structure and function of shading devices, facade materials, and their openings. To understand the historical context of shading devices in Bushehr, the various types of shades present in the buildings of this region were classified, and the different shading solutions used in Bushehr were identified. In line with the purpose of the research, it is necessary to test different types of shading devices as research variables. Then check the type of materials and the dimensions of the openings used in the facades.
Findings: To address the research questions, separate simulations were conducted to evaluate the thermal performance of shading devices, window-to-wall ratio, and facade materials in an apartment building. The optimal variable to reduce the cooling load was selected and applied to the building, and its thermal behavior to improve the thermal performance of future buildings in hot and humid climates was studied as the optimal building. The simulation was performed using Design Builder software with Energy Plus simulator engine and Climate Consultant software version 55 and Ashrae thermal comfort model. The findings indicate that the most efficient facade configuration comprises of vertical blinds, lattice windows, and a white cement facade, which resulted in a cooling load reduction of up to 38% and a total load reduction of up to 33% for the building.
Conclusion: The simulation results reveal that the optimal building configuration outperformed both the basic research model and local models on selected days throughout the year, in terms of load testing. This highlights the importance of implementing local solutions in the architecture of hot and humid climates.

Abstract Extended Abstract
Objective and background: One of the main problems in contemporary Iranian architecture is the loss of identity and its related factors, such as a sense of attachment to the place due to neglecting the semiotic aspects of architectural reading and design in instruction ideation. The design meaning and indicators are effective in creating identity, beauty, and pleasure in architectural work via giving rise to an internal perception of space. Semiotics provide the most important meaning factors and can effectively upgrade the sense of place for a better relationship between architecture and users. Using the principles of semiotics is one of the best solutions to investigate how meaning is granted to space. As the most distinct semantic factors in creating mental associations via relying on the concept of implication, symbols can effectively enhance the sense of place in relation to the audience. Thus, using semiotics from the perspective of the designer's relationship with the audience in instructing design can be a step towards granting meaning to space and creating a sense of place for the users. However,  the imitation and copying of samples result in a lack of identity and social culture. Ideation is one of the most seminal and most important parts of the design instruction process. Therefore, the negligence of the meaning in the design process can also affect the ideation process because the final design is the representation and reflection of the ideas. The ideas mentioned in the literature review, including "patterns of design," 'sign," and effective factors on readability," show that previous researches have neglected the semiotic approach in ideation. Therefore, there is a need for a semiotic approach. In this study, the first research question is: "what are the effective factors in the creation of ideation process" and the second question is: "How is the relationship between the effective factors in design instruction process based on semiotics." The factors of  'human,' 'time' and 'place' that are effective on mental images should be considered when semiotic is used. This research aims to correct the design instruction process in ideation levels using semiotics by emphasizing the users' perception.
Method: The qualitative and quantitative research methods, path analysis, factor analysis, and modeling have been used in this research. The quantitive research method can be defined in two phases. In the first phase, the "cross-sectional survey" is used for exploring the user community, and the correlation method is used in the second phase. The survey study method begins without any presumption. In this article, the opinions of a group of architecture students and their professors on the research subject have been collected in the form of a questionnaire, and at the end, based on this information, concepts and effective variables are identified, and factor analysis is performed. The second phase of the research begins with the assumption obtained from the survey. This study is of descriptive-analytical type in terms of the method because, because in addition to showing the facts, the reasons for the problems are also explained.
Finding: According to the findings, "the research-oriented analysis" directly influences the dependent variable. Moreover,  the "aesthetic aspects" that act as the intermediary variable are influenced by the "research-oriented analysis" because the aesthetic aspects differ based on the social-cultural background. Thus, it is necessary to recognize the aesthetic aspects of the context's social culture through research-oriented analysis in the instruction process. On the other hand, it influences other factors such as "ideation" and "collective reading-oriented evaluation of the signs". Another intermediary variable that influences the dependent variable based on the model is the aesthetical aspect. One of the factors influencing the reading and perception of the signs is the psychological issues. Since the reading and perception of users are the main parts of semiotics, "the collective reading-oriented evaluation of signs" also plays as another intermediary variable in the formation of the model. This could increase the audience's satisfaction since their needs are met.  Also, the design idea is presented for the audience's collective evaluation, and the model forms the "research-oriented analysis" in case of dissatisfaction. That is because dissatisfaction with an idea shows inadequacy and/or imprecision in the identification of the context and the semiotic researches. Hence, the ideation is repeated until the audience's satisfaction is achieved in the evaluation stage.
Conclusion: The results show that "research-oriented analysis", "aesthetic aspects", "psychologists aspects", and "collective perception-based evaluation of signs" are the effective factors in the creation of the ideation process. The proposed model is introducing a cycle that concentrates on the evaluation of user's perceptions by signs.