Are thermostats really sexist?

Thomas Parkinson
Aug 31, 2018 · 3 min read

Written by Thomas Parkinson & Stefano Schiavon

Cynthia Nixon’s team claims that 76 degrees Fahrenheit is an ideal temperature. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo prefers it cooler. Both are right, but science tells us that we can set it at 79 degrees and make everybody happy.

The office thermostat attracts impassioned input whenever it is brought up. People complain of being a sweaty mess at their desks whilst others wear three pairs of socks just to survive the cold. And everyone knows a temperature bully who guards the thermostat like their life depends on it. There seems to be little in the way of consensus.

Surveys conducted in North American office buildings show that less than half the occupants are satisfied with the temperature. We are generally more satisfied at home because we have control over the environment and dress as we prefer. These options aren’t as available in offices, where corporate dress codes are common and only a few thermostats govern an entire floor.

Is there an ideal temperature? No. Some, like Ms. Nixon, prefer it to be warmer. Others, like Gov. Comuo, prefer it cooler. And some are indifferent. The problem in offices is that regardless of the actual temperature, it is generally the same for all, even if people have different needs. Think of shoes as an analogy. If manufacturers only made one size, corresponding to the “average” of a population, most people would complain of shoes being either too big or too small. No one size will fit everybody, much like there is no universally comfortable temperature despite what your building manager, partner or colleague might say.

Our understanding of, or ability to predict,thermal comfort is based in part on models of the human body which make assumptions about things like height, weight, and metabolic rate. These are important when calculating how heat moves between our body and the surrounding environment.

Many of these assumptions are based on experiments with subjects who were — you guessed it — young, fit men. Most of the experiments were done in the 1960’s for the Air Force or NASA who wanted to know how extreme temperatures might affect pilots and astronauts. Men dominated those professions at the time, and the scientists didn’t necessarily envision their research ultimately influencing office thermostats. Similar discrepancies are found for different levels of fitness, race and age.

Fast forward to present day where many of these assumptions still hold. But the models have advanced to account for differences including lower metabolic rates of women and the lighter insulation of their attire, despite their biased origins.

Is the thermostat sexist? Yes. The routine observation that women generally prefer warmer temperatures than those common to offices is more a problem with how buildings are operated rather than the science. It is true that temperatures are set to suit the physiology and clothing of men, but buildings are not controlled by scientists.

A single optimum temperature does not exist, but newer technologies can improve comfort by catering to individual preferences. In many cases it is as simple as relaxing dress codes, particularly for men, and using a desk fan. These solutions have the added bonus of being energy efficient. The reduction in electricity use when the thermostat settings are increased, easily up to 79 degree for a New York summer, helps tackle profligate greenhouse gas emissions.

Gov. Cuomo thinks that “climate change is a reality, and not to address it is gross negligence by government and irresponsible as citizens”. We think he can start by setting the thermostat at 79 degrees Fahrenheit and placing a fan under his podium.

Thomas Parkinson

Written by

Researcher at UC Berkeley interested in buildings, sensor technologies , thermal physiology, and psychophysics

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