ABSTRACT Heat can evoke a strong sensory perception and convey socio-cultural meanings as thermal pleasure. In this study, the researchers applied the grounded theory approach to explore how people perceive thermal pleasure in Yazd. The common aspects that emerged from the analysis of people’s experiences were categorized to form a conceptual framework. It was found that ‘socio-cultural background’, ‘spatial situations’, and ‘thermal sources’ are the three categories that, as the hidden layers, provide the conditions for perceiving thermal pleasure. ‘Distinction’ was identified to be the core category that influenced thermal pleasure. ‘Distinction’ here refers to a clear difference in social, thermal, and sensory aspects. The association between these four categories leads to physiological, psychological, behavioural, and axiological thermal pleasure as a consequence. This conceptual framework provides a broader perspective on the qualitative factors influencing thermal pleasure. This information can be useful for architects, and researchers in comfort sciences.
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