Residents' satisfaction in low-middle and upper-middle income contemporary Saudi housing environments: The case of Riyadh

The rapid development of contemporary housing and residential areas in Saudi cities raises serious questions about the need for continuity in local urban patterns and their responsiveness to the Saudi cultural and design traditions. The main objectives of this research have been: (1) to test users' satisfaction and dissatisfaction with Western-oriented housing forms, and to explore the kinds of adaptive behaviors Saudi families living in contemporary Saudi residential communities have made to this housing; (2) to generate planning design guidelines based on careful studies of cultural values, human behavioral patterns, and principles of traditional urban forms.;A sample of lower and higher middle class contemporary neighborhoods in Riyadh was surveyed to investigate residents' satisfaction and behavioral adaptations in terms of the house, neighborhood, and city. Four research instruments were used: (1) questionnaire; (2) interview; (3) descriptive behavioral observations; and (4) visual and graphic analytical techniques. On the house level, the study focused on the degree to which the design of the contemporary house meets the privacy, lifestyle, and extended family needs of the Saudi family. Physical and social planning aspects such as spatial design, neighborhood facilities, child raising, and social interactions provided the basis for the neighborhood study. Finally, residents' satisfaction regarding accessibility to city facilities from the neighborhood was examined. Throughout the study, residents' attitude towards physical and social attributes of the traditional house and neighborhood served as a basis for comparison.;The study found that residents of both case study areas were satisfied with the quality of their contemporary housing. Dissatisfaction occurred, however, with the low level of socialization, lack of children's playgrounds, lack of privacy in the dwelling unit, poor landscaping, lack of neighborhood facilities, and dangerous car oriented streets. Lower middle class residents exhibited similar behavioral adaptations to higher middle class residents in such planning and design circumstances. Certain minor behavioral differences, however, developed among these groups.;The study suggests a methodology and implications for future research. It contributes to our understanding of cultural and religious values related to Saudi housing. It also suggests long and short term planning policies for improving the quality of future and developed contemporary housing in Saudi Arabia. At the apex of these planning policies is gradual modification of the current zoning ordinances for residential neighborhood planning to satisfy the Saudi people's cultural and religious needs, and to insure compatibility of the housing pattern with the local climatic and physical contexts.