Volumetric behaviour analysis of Hong Kong public housing flats : space, behaviour and design

Abstract

The Volumetric Behaviour Analysis (VBA) programme (HK$1.341 million GRF, 2023–2025), builds on a series of research investigations that began with several domestic interior studies of spatial practices and investigated whether, and how, they were informed by military strategies and urban theories. Initial field research, visual analysis and documentation demonstrated that the organisation of furniture and domestic objects could be systematically codified based on their behavioural significance. This opened new avenues for volumetric and behavioural analysis specifically in residential interior studies of public housing in Hong Kong. Since 2018, research in this under-examined field has provided a foundational framework to examine the socioeconomic effects of spatial compression and how domestic space is commodified through the concept of the ‘square foot society’ (Bruyns, 2016). This three-year VBA study (2023–2026) investigates the gap between the design intentions of public housing in Hong Kong and how residents use and adapt to their environments. Hong Kong’s public housing system accommodates 2.16 million residents across 822,423 units (Hong Kong Housing Authority, 2024) and faces severe space constraints alongside increasing demand. The project examines the mismatch between planned and standardised ‘as-designed’ layouts and residents’ ‘as-lived’ experiences and evolving needs. It introduces a strategic methodological shift from a planimetric section to vertical section–based analysis, examining how volumetric spaces are occupied rather than solely represented in two-dimensional layouts. By integrating digital modelling, 3D scanning, semi-structured interviews, spatial coding techniques, volumetric behavioural analysis and ergonomics into the research process, and conducting a comparative analysis that synthesises the data to better understand ‘as lived’ spatial dynamics, the project has revealed new findings and will inform potential new solutions for the development and adaptation of existing public housing when the study concludes in 2026.