Development of an Artefact to Support Homeowner Decision-making for Housing Retrofit

Panakaduwa, Chamara

Abstract

The sustainability in the UK housing sector is not adequate. Housing retrofit is reported to improve the sustainability. The progress of housing retrofit is low. The underlying reason can be suggested as the limited interest of the homeowners to retrofit their houses. The research aims to develop an artefact for an information system to encourage homeowners to undertake sustainable housing retrofit. The objectives of the research are to study the factors influencing homeowners’ interest in housing retrofit, identify the requirements for an artefact to support homeowner decision-making, develop the artefact and validate the artefact for the intended capabilities.
The research process was approached from design science. Accordingly, the research was conducted by identifying the research problem, outlining the solution, defining the requirements, developing the artefact, validating the artefact, and contributing to the body of knowledge. The research problem and the solution were justified with a literature review. A mixed-method methodological choice was used with both interviews and a questionnaire survey to develop the artefact. Artefact validation was done by semi-structured interviews.
The research findings supported developing an artefact for an information system to encourage homeowners to retrofit their houses. Homeowner decision-making behaviour, the social system of the homeowner and the technical system of housing retrofit were focused for this purpose. Apart from the utility of the artefact, the study will contribute to the knowledge of developing artefacts for non-technical audiences. Further, the data collection by the system shall facilitate information for better sustainability policy decisions.
The research complements the stakeholder engagement model of “one stop shop” for housing retrofits. Research recommends a digital one stop shop localised to the homeowner’s neighbourhood. Existing similar solutions have only basic capabilities compared with the proposal. The research also recommends reframing housing retrofit from an investment focus to a consumption focus. It also suggests considering a homeowner-centric approach to retrofit over the existing property-centric approach. There are total six recommendations to encourage homeowners to retrofit their houses.

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Acceptance Date: Feb 21, 2025
• Online Publication Date: Mar 20, 2025
• Deposit Date: Feb 26, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 21, 2025
• Award Date: Mar 20, 2025