Effects of visual, thermal, and acoustic comfort on the psychological restoration of the older people in a severe cold city

It is essential for people to have a comfortable environment to improve their psychological well-being. The role of visual-thermal-acoustic comfort in psychological restoration is unknown, especially across different seasons. Here, we examined the influence of these comforts on psychological restoration using a questionnaire with a restoration outcome scale in Harbin, a typical cold city in China. Results indicate that visual, thermal, and acoustic comfort vote (VCV, TCV, and ACV) significantly contribute to psychological restoration over a one-year period, but there is no interaction effect among them. To identify the causes of 'adverse' psychological restoration (APR), we compared the veto powers of VCV, TCV, and ACV, and found that their one-vote veto power varies according to season. During the spring, TCV>VCV>ACV; in winter and autumn, VCV>ACV>TCV; and in summer, TCV>ACV>VCV. There is a large veto power of visual-thermal-acoustic comfort on psychological restoration, but there is no absolute veto power. Even when visual, thermal, and acoustic comfort levels are all 'comfortable', older respondents are more likely to experience APR. It is the most likely to occur in summer (16.00%) and least likely in winter (4.17%). We found that visual-thermal-acoustic comfort accounted for 41.5% of psychological restoration in spring, and that the variance explanation for other seasons was approximately 20%. This study aimed to explore the relationship between visual-thermal-acoustic comfort and psychological restoration, and ultimately aid in improving the mental health of older adults.