ISO 10551:2019 PDF

Ergonomics of the physical environment — Subjective judgement scales for assessing physical environments

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Title (English):

ISO 10551:2019

Ergonomics of the physical environment — Subjective judgement scales for assessing physical environments

Document status:: Active
Format:: Electronic (PDF)
Number of pages:: 28
Publication date:: July 1, 2019
Edition:: ISO IS 10551 edition 2 version 1
ICS:: 13.180

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Description (English):

This document presents principles and examples of practical application for the construction of appropriate subjective scales for use in the assessment and evaluation of the physical environment. It does not standardize particular scales. It considers scales of perception, comfort, preference, acceptability, expression form and tolerance, and environmental components such as thermal, visual, air quality, acoustic and vibration. It does not consider other scales such as: — scales related to the effects of the environment on the ability to read displays or signs, on manual performance or on psychological conditions such as mood, etc.; — scales related to pain or scales related to stimuli that can lead to injury. This document does not present principles of surveys (see Note) or questionnaire design. However, the scales that are developed using this document can be incorporated into surveys or questionnaires. NOTE Environmental surveys are described in ISO 28802. ISO 28802 includes scales that are complementary to, and based upon, the principles of scale construction that are described in this document.

Technical details

Technical committee: ISO/TC 159/SC 5 - Ergonomics of the physical environment
SKU: ISO 10551:2019

Abstract

Overview

ISO 10551:2019 - Ergonomics of the physical environment - Subjective judgement scales for assessing physical environments - provides principles and practical examples for constructing valid, reliable subjective scales used to assess how people perceive and evaluate physical environments. The standard does not mandate specific scales; instead it describes how to design and use scales that measure perception, comfort, preference, acceptability and tolerance across environmental components such as thermal, visual, air quality, acoustic and vibration.

Key topics

Principles of scale construction: guidance on wording, structure (e.g., bipolar vs. unipolar formats), instructions, and bias reduction to improve validity and reliability of subjective responses.
Types of judgement scales: perceptual (sensation), evaluative (comfort/discomfort), preferential (future choice), and personal acceptability/tolerance statements.
Administration and format: recommendations for presenting scales, repeating enquiries over time, and ensuring consistent instructions to respondents.
Data handling: summary guidance on data analysis and integration (e.g., repeat measures, overall means, changes and variability).
Practical examples and annexes: commonly used scales for thermal, acoustic, visual, vibration and air quality environments plus worked examples and application notes.
Scope limitations: excludes scales for effects on reading/display performance, manual performance, mood, pain or stimuli that cause injury; it does not standardize questionnaire design (see ISO 28802 for environmental surveys).

Applications

ISO 10551:2019 supports practical use cases where human judgement of environmental quality matters:

Building design and post-occupancy evaluation (POE) - measure occupant satisfaction with indoor environmental quality (IEQ).
HVAC and thermal comfort studies - design or evaluate heating, cooling and ventilation strategies using standardized subjective inputs.
Lighting and acoustic assessments - evaluate perceived brightness, glare, noise annoyance or acceptability in workplaces and public spaces.
Workplace ergonomics and occupational health - supplement physical and physiological measures with subjective assessments of comfort and tolerability.
Research and comparative studies - create consistent scales to compare subjective data across studies, populations and countries.

Who should use this standard

Ergonomists, human factors specialists and researchers
Building engineers, HVAC designers and architects
Occupational hygienists and facility managers
IEQ consultants and environmental psychologists
Standards developers and survey professionals (to incorporate compatible subjective scales)

Related standards

ISO 28802 - environmental surveys (complementary scales and survey guidance)
ISO 13731 - ergonomics of the thermal environment (vocabulary and symbols)

ISO 10551:2019 is a practical resource for anyone needing to construct or apply subjective judgement scales to evaluate indoor environmental quality, ensuring consistent, interpretable and comparable human-centred data.

Related standards

Mentioned in the description and other ISO standards

Abstract

Overview

Key topics

Principles of scale construction: guidance on wording, structure (e.g., bipolar vs. unipolar formats), instructions, and bias reduction to improve validity and reliability of subjective responses.
Types of judgement scales: perceptual (sensation), evaluative (comfort/discomfort), preferential (future choice), and personal acceptability/tolerance statements.
Administration and format: recommendations for presenting scales, repeating enquiries over time, and ensuring consistent instructions to respondents.
Data handling: summary guidance on data analysis and integration (e.g., repeat measures, overall means, changes and variability).
Practical examples and annexes: commonly used scales for thermal, acoustic, visual, vibration and air quality environments plus worked examples and application notes.
Scope limitations: excludes scales for effects on reading/display performance, manual performance, mood, pain or stimuli that cause injury; it does not standardize questionnaire design (see ISO 28802 for environmental surveys).

Applications

ISO 10551:2019 supports practical use cases where human judgement of environmental quality matters:

Building design and post-occupancy evaluation (POE) - measure occupant satisfaction with indoor environmental quality (IEQ).
HVAC and thermal comfort studies - design or evaluate heating, cooling and ventilation strategies using standardized subjective inputs.
Lighting and acoustic assessments - evaluate perceived brightness, glare, noise annoyance or acceptability in workplaces and public spaces.
Workplace ergonomics and occupational health - supplement physical and physiological measures with subjective assessments of comfort and tolerability.
Research and comparative studies - create consistent scales to compare subjective data across studies, populations and countries.

Who should use this standard

Ergonomists, human factors specialists and researchers
Building engineers, HVAC designers and architects
Occupational hygienists and facility managers
IEQ consultants and environmental psychologists
Standards developers and survey professionals (to incorporate compatible subjective scales)

Related standards

ISO 28802 - environmental surveys (complementary scales and survey guidance)
ISO 13731 - ergonomics of the thermal environment (vocabulary and symbols)

ISO 10551:2019 PDF

Technical details

Abstract

Overview

Key topics

Applications

Who should use this standard

Related standards

Related standards

Abstract

Overview

Key topics

Applications

Who should use this standard

Related standards

Related standards

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