Uses of places and setting preferences in a French Antarctic station

The various uses of space as well as the environmental preferences of wintering people were investigated during 1 year in a French Antarctic station using daily participant observation (for uses of places) and a repeated measure of the perception and evaluation of the settings. The uses of places varied according to occupational and age subgroups: The young scientists expressed a higher need for privacy and a strong investment in their working areas, whereas the technicians preferred the social leisure area (main hall). These places were used as different behavior settings and thus corresponded to flexible environments. Flexibility was a characteristic of all the preferred places. A change…