Grounded theory-KANO model for optimising peri-urban rural housing design

Linjie Yang; Kamarul Afizi Kosman; Yunfei Liu; Azimin Samsul Mohd Tazilan

doi:10.1038/s41598-026-46055-2

. 2026 Apr 4;16:20343. doi: 10.1038/s41598-026-46055-2

Grounded theory-KANO model for optimising peri-urban rural housing design

Linjie Yang ¹, Kamarul Afizi Kosman ^1,^✉, Yunfei Liu ², Azimin Samsul Mohd Tazilan ¹

PMCID: PMC13328537 PMID: 41932989

Abstract

Against the backdrop of rapid urbanization, the housing demand of suburban rural residents is highly dynamic. Architects’ participation in rural design is an important pathway to improving residential quality, but current rural housing construction still lacks design methods that address residents’ needs. For this reason, this study proposes a KANO model synthesis method based on Grounded theory (GT-KANO model) to identify and quantify the residential function preferences of suburban rural residences. Using S Village in suburban Xi’an as a case study, this study uses the Grounded theory to identify the residential needs of 40 families from interview materials, classifies and prioritizes 161 questionnaire responses according to the KANO model, and builds a residential demand quantification model comprising five demand dimensions and four preference levels. The results show that villagers pay the most attention to the basic functions and climate adaptability of residences, followed by the convenience of life and space comfort. In contrast, they pay less attention to cultural expression and sustainable concepts. Among them, the "Must-be" attributes are concentrated in the elemental composition of the housing base orientation, residential area and courtyard setting; the "One-dimensional" attributes emphasize the daily use elements such as independent shower room, restaurant and drainage system; the “Attractive” attributes are reflected in the quality improvement factors such as lighting, insulation, safety and space beautification; the “Indifferent” attributes are more related decorative elements and green technology have a limited impact on satisfaction. This study reveals the intrinsic logical relationship between residential demand and rural housing design goals, builds a design decision-making framework of "demand attributes - design strategy - spatial response", and contributes guidance for the updated practices and policy design of suburban rural housing.

Keywords: Housing needs, Villages in urban–rural transition, Grounded theory, KANO model, Design goals, Strategy framework

Subject terms: Engineering, Environmental sciences, Environmental social sciences, Environmental studies

Introduction

Motivation

With the continuous evolution of industrial structure, lifestyle, and family composition^1–3, the housing needs of suburban rural residents have undergone dynamic changes, continually being reshaped by daily practice and the family life cycle⁴. The traditional agricultural livelihood has been gradually replaced by non-agricultural employment, and the residential form has also changed from a family-based production-life integration pattern to a more separate and service-oriented residential model⁵. At the same time, the penetration of urban values has reshaped residents’ lifestyles⁶, guiding the move from functional adequacy toward quality-oriented, individualized, and modern patterns of living. In addition, population ageing has further strengthened the actual demand for ageing-friendly space⁷. However, the analysis of this demand’s evolution in existing research remains insufficient⁸. Based on this, the accurate identification and classification of the residential needs of suburban rural residents are key links for understanding residential changes and optimising spatial configuration in the urban–rural interface zones.

Literature review

Existing residential research shows a clear focus on both ends of the "urban–rural" spectrum in the selection of objects. On the one hand, a large body of literature focuses on housing supply, rental systems in urban villages, and residential segregation, examining structural issues such as population flows, housing affordability, and spatial governance^9–11. The residential demands of urban residents are more shaped by the housing market and the structure of urban opportunities. They usually give priority to "external system conditions"^12,13, such as affordability, commuting and public service accessibility, residential stability, and community safety. The core logic is to gain access to urban resources through housing location and institutional arrangements. Even if it involves space and environment, the discussion mostly focuses on improving experience within the established product system and property management, such as living convenience, facility efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and health risk control^14,15 etc. On the other hand, rural research mostly takes the protection of traditional villages, the improvement of the living environment in remote areas or the demonstration villages for rural revitalization as the main scenes, focusing on the continuation of cultural heritage, landscape control and infrastructure to make up for the shortcomings^16–18. Accordingly, the residential demands of rural residents are more shaped by the composite structure of production and life, local cultural order and institutional resource constraints. They typically prioritize the coordinated organization of residential–productive spaces, the maintenance of courtyard boundaries and public interaction, residential safety and durability, and the usability and reliability of infrastructure such as water supply and drainage, roads, and sewage treatment¹⁹. The underlying logic is to sustain everyday operation and household reproduction under constrained construction conditions and local lifestyles. Even if it involves modernization, most relevant discussions fall under the framework of landscape coordination and facility replenishment, such as the continuation of traditional morphological elements, material and facade control, public space improvement, and adaptive transformation and environmental improvement²⁰.

However, for the urban–rural transition zone, the superposition effect of “urban expansion” and "rural functional reorganization" makes the renewal of suburban farmhouses present a key contradiction that is different from the protection objects of urban commercial houses and traditional villages²¹: on the one hand, the renewal is mostly promoted by self-construction and phased addition, and the structural systems such as brick–concrete and frame structural systems are juxtaposed, enclosure materials and construction practices show non-standardization differences with changes in economic capacity and construction team experience²², which makes the performance boundaries such as structural safety, insulation and airtightness, durability maintenance and operation cost more uncertain, and in turn restricts space organization and expansion methods²³; meanwhile, social etiquette practices and family structure still impose ongoing spatial norms on ceremonial spaces (e.g., the entrance hall or main hall), courtyard enclosure hierarchies, and orientation and axial order²⁴.In the context of housing modernization, it creates tension with the demand for modern comfort and promotes the evolution of demand²⁵. At the same time, suburban farmhouse space often needs to accommodate complex activities such as production and operation, storage and kinship interaction outside of residence. The family structure and lifestyle reorganization constantly trigger the need for space addition, separation, and reorganization⁵. Therefore, the renewal of suburban rural housing is not about improving a single performance indicator, but about identifying, balancing, and implementing composite demand under multiple constraints, such as construction conditions, lifestyle, and cultural order. It is necessary not only to clarify the mechanisms and priorities of demand formation, but also to translate them into implementable combinations of spatial organization and construction technologies. Therefore, the construction of a closed-loop method system of "demand identification—quantitative characterization—strategy translation" has become the key to improving the interpretability and strategy operability of updated decision-making.

Existing research on housing demand typically employs methods such as interview-based semantic induction, questionnaire-based quantification, and behavioral pattern analysis. On the one hand, qualitative research can deeply present the types, motivations, and trigger conditions of residents’ needs in specific contexts, capture the implicit rules and the meaning-construction process in daily life practice, and reveal the related structure between needs and their generation mechanism. For example, Grounded theory is often used to identify the types and characteristics of user needs in depth. Autism-friendly housing research distills core needs such as “home feeling”, "safety and autonomy", and "sensory balance and activity participation" through layered coding and induction of interview materials, and conducts lighting, sound environment, transition space, and targeted design analyses, such as static and dynamic zoning²⁶. The Delphi builds consensus on indicator systems for urban old-community renewal through multiple rounds of anonymous feedback and clarifies the key directions of infrastructure safety, public space quality, and collaborative optimization of service systems²⁷. Conversely, quantitative research relies on established indicator systems and scale-based instruments to rank demands, assign weights, and conduct correlation analyses. It offers strong measurability and comparability, enables statistical testing and cross-context comparisons with large samples, and reveals key influencing factors and their effect pathways through model-based analysis. Therefore, it provides a stable quantitative basis for demand prioritization and strategic decision-making. For example, the KANO model stratifies and ranks needs using a two-way "functional-non-functional" questionnaire. The satisfaction study of housing for the elderly identifies attribute types such as must-be attributes, one-dimensional attributes, and attractive attributes, and reveals the key impact of residence arrangement and health status on satisfaction²⁸. In addition, methods such as Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP), and Importance–Performance Analysis (IPA) are widely used for weight identification and gap diagnosis. SEM clarifies the relative contribution of multidimensional spatial quality to satisfaction through path analysis²⁹. FAHP reveals differences between experts and users in the prioritization of visual and thermal comfort³⁰. IPA is used to position the optimization priorities of "high importance—low performance"³¹. In thermal comfort research, Griffiths model, logistic regression and cluster analysis are further used to depict the different patterns of thermal perception thresholds, individual characteristics and behavioral responses^32,33. In addition, some studies have introduced physiological monitoring into thermal environment analysis. For example, researchers collect data such as heart rate and skin temperature of the elderly through wristband equipment, and combine it with Fried weakness grading to reveal the thermal perception threshold drift and energy consumption response delay caused by the decline of the elderly, suggesting that health-oriented residences should pay attention to the thermal regulation ability and environmental adaptability of the elderly³⁴.

However, the methodology of existing research still has shortcomings. Although qualitative research can reveal the type, motivation, and trigger conditions of demand in a specific context, its results are mostly at the theme and category levels, and it is difficult to operationalize into repeatable variables and thresholds. Although quantitative research can rely on established indicator systems and scale instruments to conduct demand ranking, weight allocation, and correlation analysis, the “preset variables–measurement–modeling” approach often weakens the interpretation of demand formation processes and contextual differences. This can lead to semantic misalignment between quantitative results and real usage logic, making it difficult to integrate qualitative and quantitative findings and to translate research conclusions into actionable design strategies. To this end, this paper intends to build a Grounded theory–KANO (GT–KANO) analysis framework that integrates the Grounded theory refining ability and the KANO attribute classification logic, identify demand indicators for the suburban rural living situation system, distinguish its attributes and determine priorities, and further build the translation path of "demand-strategy" to improve interpretability and coupling between user requirements and design response.

Among them, Grounded theory was proposed by Glaser and Strauss, which emphasizes continuous comparison and gradual abstraction of the original data through system coding and constant comparative analysis, thereby inductively forming concepts, categories, and their relationships³⁵. Its analysis usually adopts open coding, axial coding and selective coding: firstly, the interview text is annotated sentence by sentence to extract concepts; secondly, the concepts are classified into categories and the logical links between categories are sorted out, and finally, the core categories are clarified on the basis of overall integration and an interpretation framework is formed³⁶ (see Fig. 1). Based on this, the study conducts round-by-round coding and continuous comparison of the interview text, distilling the lived experience and potential needs of villagers, and forming a structured demand dimension and indicator pool, which is used for subsequent KANO questionnaire entry development and priority analysis.

Fig. 1 — Coding process of interview data based on Grounded theory.

The KANO model was proposed by Japanese scholar Noriaki KANO to delineate the nonlinear relationship between the degree of demand realization and user satisfaction, and can identify the type of demand and determine the priority for improvement²⁸. The model divides the needs into six categories: Must-Be, M, One-Dimensional, O, Attractive, A, Indifferent, I, and Reverse, R and Questionable, Q³⁷ (see Fig. 2). Among them, the Must-Be attribute corresponds to the “basic needs”. Users usually regard it as the basic configuration that the house should have: once it is missing, it will significantly reduce satisfaction and trigger strong dissatisfaction. However, after it is satisfied, it is often difficult to continue to improve and bring about the same increase in satisfaction. Therefore, in design decision-making, Must-Be attribute should be taken as a priority guarantee, its standard standards and verifiable implementation path should be clarified, and it should be taken as the bottom line condition for the feasibility and access of the program. The satisfaction response of One-dimensional attribute is monotonous and nearly linear: the higher the realization level, the higher the satisfaction; the lower the realization level, the higher the dissatisfaction. This type of attribute usually has strong measurable and comparability, which is suitable for continuous improvement through performance indicators, hierarchical configuration or parameter optimization. It is also the most critical decision-making object in program trade-off and cost–benefit configuration. Attractive attribute corresponds to “excitement needs”, which is characterized by exceeding user expectations: satisfaction can be significantly improved when realized, but the lack does not necessarily lead to obvious dissatisfaction. Therefore, the Attractive attribute is more suitable for differentiated design and value gain configuration, and should be based on the premise that the Must-Be attribute and key one-dimensional attributes are fully guaranteed. The marginal impact of Indifferent attribute on satisfaction is limited and usually does not constitute a priority improvement direction; in the update situation with limited resources, it should be invested cautiously or only as a supplement if conditions allow. The Reverse attribute may cause dissatisfaction when it is implemented, which often reflects the differentiation of user preferences, situational mismatch or significant differences in the target population. Unified configuration should be avoided in the design, and it is appropriate to deal with it through options, adjustable mechanisms or group strategies. Questionable attribute is mostly caused by understanding bias, inconsistent answers or abnormal answers. Its validity and classification results should be judged after data cleaning, logical consistency verification or necessary return visit verification. It should be noted that under the framework of the KANO model, the classification of requirements is not only based on functional requirements or design standards, but also based on the user’s subjective perception and expectations. These classifications reflect the perception and needs of villagers for specific functions. This classification aims to provide guidance for service optimization and design decision-making, ensure that the villagers’ expectations can be prioritized on the basis of meeting the basic needs, and improve overall satisfaction through innovative design.

Fig. 2 — KANO model of user demand attributes.

Under this research logic, this article focuses on the following three core issues:

How to systematically identify and refine the demand index system that affects the satisfaction of rural residents in the suburbs?
How to classify the attributes of demand indicators and achieve priority sorting?
How to standardize and translate the results of demand analysis into an operable residential design strategy system?

Materials and methods

This study has developed a residential design method system, "demand identification-attribute classification-strategy generation," based on empirical research. The first step is to collect villagers’ living experience information through interviews, and use Ground theory to refine and summarize multi-dimensional residential needs to form a demand index system; the second step is to design a KANO two-way questionnaire according to this system, and determine the attribute types and importance of each demand through model analysis; the third step is to integrate the classification results with design insights to develop a set of strategic principles that can directly inform architectural practice. Figure 3 illustrates the overall research process and methodological framework.

Fig. 3 — Research process and methods framework for performance-oriented residential space design.

Location and geographical features

China has increasingly prioritized urban–rural integrated development in recent years, recognizing it as a crucial strategy for promoting high-quality rural revitalization³⁸. Against this backdrop, Xi’an has been a major pilot city for the national urban–rural integration and rural revitalization strategy since 2019, undertaking the core policy task of serving as a “National Urban–Rural Integration Development Pilot Zone” and acting as a key demonstration area for exploring pathways to urban–rural integration and institutional innovation³⁹.

S Village is located in Taiping Street, Xi’an (108°41′4′′–108°43′1′′ east longitude, 34°31′1′′–34°32′3′′ north latitude). It is located in the urban-suburban transition zone at the junction of Xi’an and Xianyang (see Fig. 4). It is located within Xixian New Area, a national pilot zone for urban–rural integration, and serves as an important demonstration area for rural renewal and spatial governance in the region⁴⁰. In terms of location and function, S Village is characterized by red apricot viewing and picking for leisure, and provides outward-oriented services such as urban weekend leisure and fruit supply, thereby demonstrating the functional characteristics of a suburban agriculture and cultural tourism complex. In terms of residential form, the village residences in the Guanzhong Plain are still dominated by courtyard-style, self-built farmhouses. Although there have been sporadic farmhouses and homestay transformations in recent years, the overall residence still centers on daily life. Unlike typical urban villages, the resident population of S Village during the survey period is mainly local aborigines, and has not formed a rental housing system for foreign migrant workers to live stably. Therefore, the demand analysis of this article focuses on the residential demands of local permanent families. It is in this suburban setting that the village provides services such as urban leisure consumption and fruit supply, and the main body of residents is still local permanent families. On this basis, the superposition of urban expansion and rural functional reorganization further shapes commuting patterns, employment opportunities, and lifestyles, and influences decisions on self-building and phased extensions, making residential demand more dynamic and structurally differentiated⁴¹.

Fig. 4 — Location of S village in Taiping town.

Data collection and organisation

S village consists of two residential areas. Area 1 contains six villager groups and 577 households; Area 2 contains only one villager group and 93 households (see Fig. 5). Area 1 has a large number of residents and diverse residential forms, which can fully reflect the village’s overall residential characteristics and spatial problems. Therefore, this study selects area 1 for residential demand research.

Fig. 5 — Spatial distribution and survey sample profile of S village.

Field research includes two parts: demand research and architectural research. Among them, the sample size of demand interviews is determined according to the principle of “theoretical saturation”. During synchronous coding, once new interviewers no longer generate new core categories, sample expansion is halted, and the sample finally reaches 40 households to ensure the integrity of demand dimension identification. The questionnaire survey expands coverage as much as possible within the scope of on-site feasibility, meets the statistical stability requirements for subsequent GT-KANO classification and sorting, and ultimately yields valid samples from 115 households. In order to realize the corresponding verification of demand information and spatial entities, this study selected 40 households from the interview sample to carry out architectural surveying and mapping synchronously, so that the "demand expression—spatial morphology/structural characteristics" can be linked one by one and form mutual verification with the questionnaire results.

The sample family structure is mainly multi-generational, and 82.5% of families have three to four generations living together. In this residential form, multiple generations of members share daily space, and residential needs often entail family-level consultation and integration. Construction investment and plan trade-offs are often coordinated, and decision-making occurs at the unit level of “households”. Based on this, the interview adopts a family-style joint interview with “household” as the record unit: when multiple members of the same household participate together, the researchers converge and sort out the views of multiple parties, and clarify the differences through follow-up and situational checking to form a traceable expression of household demand; the questionnaire distribution was also organized at the household level, with the number of questionnaires provided per household adjusted according to within-household participation. The span of residential construction in the research area covers the period from 1980 to the present, of which the construction from 1980 to 2000 is relatively concentrated.

The residential demand survey comprises two parts: a household interview and a questionnaire. The sample distribution range is shown in (Figs. 6, Fig. 7). The first stage uses a whole-group sampling approach, and the villagers located in the center of the village, with compact living forms and diverse family structures, are selected as the sample subdivisions. The research team interviewed 40 families in a semi-structured way (accounting for about 7% of the total number of households in the village). The interview focuses on the daily lives and experiences of villagers and, through open-ended questions, aims to understand their real thoughts on current housing and ideal residences (see Table 1). Each household interview takes about 1–1.5 h, and the whole process is recorded. After recording transcription, sorting and word-by-word screening, more than 40,000 words of valid text were obtained. The second stage uses simple random sampling to cover the village’s main residential areas. The questionnaire was compiled according to the results of the interview analysis in the first stage. It adopted a two-way KANO questionnaire to distribute to 161 villagers in 115 households (about 20% of the village’s population). To ensure an accurate understanding, the investigator will explain and guide on the spot. Each questionnaire takes about 20–30 min. In the end, 141 valid questionnaires were collected, with an efficiency of 87.6%.

Fig. 6 — Scope of interviews for grounded theory analysis.

Fig. 7 — Scope of KANO-based demand survey.

Table 1.

Interview and questionnaire survey themes for housing needs.

Theme

Purpose of the survey

Interview topics

Satisfaction with spaces (e.g., shower, toilet, study)

Views on facilities (e.g., solar panels, EV chargers)

Past/future home renovations

Ritual activities (e.g., New Year, funerals)

Best house in the village and the reasons

Understand housing concerns

Questionnaire topics

Overall form and site conditions

Plan organization and functional configuration

Spatial scale and area indicators

Household structure and intergenerational adaptability

Mobility, access, and parking organization

Safety protection and fire/disaster performance

Environmental comfort and building physical performance

Construction/renovation, structural systems, and architectural style/aesthetics

Sustainability and green technologies

Quantify residential needs

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The architectural research covers 40 households, including the measurement of residential plan size, the number of functional spaces, and layout positions, as well as on-site photo collection of typical spaces. The housing base in suburban rural areas in the region is mainly narrow and rectangular, with a typical size of about 10 m × 25–30 m. The residential format takes the "three open rooms, the central axis traffic core" as the typical prototype. Most of them are three open rooms, with the indoor atrium as the core of the organization, and the main functional spaces are arranged on both sides, forming a hierarchical structure of public activities in the front, the central atrium, and private living in the back. The front yard primarily serves road buffering and neighborhood interaction, while the backyard is more focused on private life services and debris storage. While organizing lighting and ventilation, the atrium often accommodates composite activities such as laundry, dining, socializing, and even temporary parking, reflecting its high-intensity, multifunctional use. In terms of construction technology, houses mostly use brick-and-mortar construction, mainly in the "one-and-a-half" model. The first floor is the main living space, and the roof platform on the second floor is used for storage and drying. Additionally, space is reserved for later construction. Climate response takes "rain protection first" as the dominant strategy. Affected by heavy rainfall and the concentration of the rainy season, residences generally strengthen rainproofing and drainage by installing pressure-shaped steel plate roofs and increasing eaves and walls. The functional layout and circulation reflect an interwoven pattern of production and daily living: living, cooking, bathing, storage, and small-scale productive activities are layered within the same spatial system, while sanitary facilities and miscellaneous storage are often placed outside in the backyard. As a result, daily service circulation frequently moves back and forth between the courtyard and interior spaces, weakening the clarity of functional zoning and the stability of spatial boundaries. The material and image level present the characteristics of practical protection and urban aesthetics. Houses are generally weatherproof, dirt-resistant and easy to maintain. The facade is often veneered with ceramic tiles, and the interior walls and floors are mostly tiled, with mortar or gypsum paint added to enhance moisture resistance and facilitate cleaning. Furthermore, with rising incomes and the urbanization of home decoration, some residences are clearly distinguished by facade style and interior furnishings. In urban housing, interior decoration is generally more comprehensive, and stylistic expression is further strengthened. In terms of living culture, the permanent residence structure of three generations coexists with the flexible residence of cyclical return to hometowns after going out for employment, which continuously drives demand for variable space, dining room compounding, and temporary reception capacity (as shown in the Fig. 8).

Fig. 8 — Spatial composition and functional zoning of a typical courtyard house in S village.

Data analysis

Establishing the residential needs classification and prioritization model

The demand analysis process is divided into two parts: first, the interview materials are three-level-coded using the Grounded theory to refine the residential demand index for Village S; the KANO model is then used to determine demand attributes and their importance.

The qualitative stage follows the "open-axial-selectivity" coding process. To ensure coding consistency, we employed an independent double-coder procedure with intercoder agreement checks. Both coders are graduate students with an architectural background. They both participated in the fieldwork and the collation of interview materials, and thus share a consistent professional understanding and field-based awareness of the research context and residential spatial issues. The two researchers independently carried out the first round of coding for the same batch of interview texts, continuously traced back and compared the existing "concept-category table" through constant ratio analysis, and compared and proofread the concepts and categories formed by each other. Discrepancies were traced back to the original context and resolved through discussion, in accordance with the established coding criteria.

In the open coding stage, this paper conducts a systematic narrative analysis of the interview narrative, extracts semantic units related to the residential experience sentence by sentence, and conceptualizes them using “label phrases” to form an initial category that can be docked with design variables⁴². The coding process follows the text sequence iteratively. Each new label generated is compared with the existing "label-concept-category table" to continuously check its connotation consistency and extension boundary, and realize the stabilization and reviewability of the classification system through three types of operations: (1) Combining synonyms, such as "eating, waiting " mixed guest and living together" and "living room activities interfere with each other" are classified as "no independent living room or guest dining mixed use"; (2) Split multiple meanings, such as "driven by others, we also covered the colored steel tile roof "into sub-labels such as" roof form" and “wall insulation”; (3) Boundary revision: for “front-yard enclosure,” opposite statements were found—for example, "I don’t want to encircle the front yard, because I often chat with my neighbors in the front yard." versus “I want to enclose the front yard because we often park here.” After tracing these back to their original contexts, we take the "function appeal of the front yard" instead of "whether it is enclosed" as the basis, and it is uniformly classified into the category of "front yard setting".

Coder A extracts a total of 47 initial categories, and coder B extracts a total of 49 categories. Compared with A, B additionally identifies two categories: "indoor atrium finish renewal" and "front yard semi-shielded space setting". The difference is mainly due to the different criteria for determining the category boundary and granularity of the two coders in the first round of coding: coder A tends to integrate and classify with higher spatial units, so the relevant expressions are integrated into comprehensive categories such as "indoor space finish renewal" and "front yard space setting" respectively, and are not further subdivided into items with clear design implications; coder B conducts a more fine-grained conceptual processing of detailed semantics related to spatial interface renewal and semi-outdoor space construction, so as to separate it from the upper category and form an independent category. To improve the operability of the index system and the accuracy of design translation, the research ultimately adopts a finer-grained index scheme. In addition, there are slight differences in the focus of the category definition and the naming method of the two coders, such as “kitchen area” and “kitchen miniaturization”, "elderly housing plan" and "elderly bedroom guest function composite", etc. To enhance conceptual orientation and improve operability, the research ultimately adopts a more specific naming method with clearer design meanings: “kitchen miniaturization” and "functional compounding of elderly bedrooms" as the final category names. Through the above iterative coding, 49 initial categories were formed, which laid the foundation for the construction of relationships and the integration of subsequent axial coding.

Axial coding stage: construct the internal logic between the initial categories according to the analysis framework of "causal conditions-phenomenon-situation-intermediary conditions-action/interaction-results". The coding paradigm takes “phenomenon” and “action” as the core. By identifying the causal conditions for the occurrence or evolution of triggering phenomena, analyzing the context that directly affects the action strategy, and analyzing the intermediary factors that indirectly affect the action process, it ultimately reveals the results of the action (see Table 2). According to this, five main categories are gradually distilled: Security-related needs, Utility-related needs, Perceived comfort needs, Spiritual and cultural needs and Sustainability-related needs. For example, the "anti-theft setting of doors and windows" in the table is aimed at public security risks such as burglary in the village, emphasizing the improvement of property and personal safety by replacing anti-theft doors and windows; the "anti-slip measures setting" is aimed at the risk of falling and injury caused by slippery indoor ground, and emphasizes reducing the probability of accidents through anti-slip paving and bathroom handrails. Although the corresponding risk types of the two differ, they both prioritize improving the safety of residential use as their core goal, so they are uniformly classified as "safety protection needs".

Table 2.

Axis coding of housing needs in S village (partial).

Table 3.

Sample KANO questionnaire.

Specific consultation items		Satisfied	It should be that way	I am indifferent	Can be tolerated	Dissatisfied
Homestead orientation	Your homestead is oriented north–south. Would you like that?
Homestead orientation	Your homestead is not oriented north–south, would you like that?

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Secondly, according to the KANO model’s rules for classifying attributes⁴⁶ (Table 4), the 141 valid questionnaires are statistically analysed. Based on respondents’ answers regarding the presence or absence of functions, the requirements attributes fall into one of six categories. For example, when the respondent takes "the reasonable orientation of the housing base" for granted and “unreasonable” causes dissatisfaction, the item is judged to be a requirement. Finally, the attribute category of each requirement is determined according to the "maximum value principle". On this basis, combine the five demand dimensions (practical function, comfort perception, security, spiritual culture, and sustainability) developed in the early stage to establish a GT-KANO comprehensive model.To compare the relative influence of needs within the same preference type, the study uses the Better–Worse index method to calculate and plot the satisfaction coefficient (Y axis) and dissatisfaction coefficient (X axis) for each demand item⁴⁷. The calculation formulas are presented below.

Table 4.

KANO evaluation table.

Quality of a factor		Reverse question (the element is not provided/or the element is insufficient)
Quality of a factor		Satisfied	It should be that way	I am indifferent	Can be tolerated	Dissatisfied
Positive question (this element is provided/This element is sufficient)	Satisfied	Q	A	A	A	O
	It should be that way	R	I	I	I	M
	I am indifferent	R	I	I	I	M
	Can be tolerated	R	I	I	I	M
	Dissatisfied	R	R	R	R	Q

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where:

A, O, M, and I denote the frequencies of Attractive, One-dimensional, Must-be, and Indifferent responses, respectively;

Better measures the increase in satisfaction when the demand is fulfilled;
Worse measures the increase in dissatisfaction when the demand is not fulfilled (reported as a negative value).

Based on these coefficients, a four-quadrant importance matrix is constructed by taking the mean values of Better and Worse across all demand items as the reference point:

where:

denotes the relative importance of demand item ;
and represent the mean values of the Better and Worse coefficients across all demand items.

A larger Inline graphic indicates a stronger influence of demand item on overall residential satisfaction.In summary, the GT-KANO model integrates qualitative and quantitative information, systematically translates residential needs from identification to order, and provides a reliable methodological framework for generating design strategies.

Results

Model for classifying and prioritising residential needs

The residential demand classification and sorting model (Fig. 9) constructs a two-dimensional coordinate system based on the satisfaction and dissatisfaction coefficients. The horizontal axis represents the level of dissatisfaction caused by the absence of a demand, while the vertical axis reflects the increase in satisfaction when the demand is fulfilled. The model results show apparent differences in the impact of different types of needs on residents’ evaluations of their residences, and that various KANO demand attributes exhibit a relatively straightforward distribution across the quadrants.

According to the demand-attribute classification results derived from grounded theory, in terms of security-related needs, Class A accounts for 75%, and Class I accounts for 25%, indicating that the overall performance of security-related elements is "high expectation attributes" and that its improvement plays a prominent role in improving satisfaction. The utility-related needs present a mixed pattern of M (16.7%), O (25%), A (50%), and I (8.3%), with the A and O categories predominating, reflecting that it not only performs basic use functions but also improves the living experience. The perceived comfort needs are evenly distributed among M (20%), O (20%), A (25%), and I (35%), reflecting the characteristics of "multi-attribute coexistence" and its importance to quality of life. In contrast, both spiritual and cultural needs and sustainability-related needs are dominated by category I (75 and 80% respectively), and the proportion of category A is low, indicating that these two types of needs are not sensitive enough in the current residential evaluation of residents and contribute to the improvement of satisfaction. Utility-related needs and perceived comfort needs cover almost all Must-be and One-dimensional indicators, and absorb about 65% of the Attractive needs, indicating that villagers have perfect basic functions of residences (such as infrastructure, stairs and ramps, drainage organization) and indoor comfort (such as space composition, lighting and ventilation, insulation) have the closest attention. In contrast, residents pay moderate attention to securtity-related needs, mainly focusing on the performance of doors and windows anti-theft, ground anti-slip and other components; while the attention to spiritual and cultural needs and sustainability-ralated needs is relatively low, which suggests that, under current economic and cognitive conditions, residential style, landscape, and energy-saving technologies have not yet become key factors shaping residents’ evaluations of their housing.

Judging from the classification results for KANO demand attributes, the Must-be needs are located in the upper-left quadrant, showing low negative sensitivity overall but playing a fundamental role in improving satisfaction. The relevant indicators include the orientation of the housing base, the residential area, the number of residential floors, the courtyard setting, and the roof construction and eaves setting. The importance coefficient is between 0.133 and 0.076. These elements, together, reflect the basic demands of residents for the overall scale of residences, the rationality of spatial layout, and climate adaptability, and constitute the core contents of “basic habitability”. One-dimensional needs are gathered in the upper right quadrant. Unlike the Must-be needs, these indicators exhibit medium negative sensitivity and a more significant positive gain; that is, their shortcomings cause obvious inconvenience in daily use, and improvements can significantly improve the quality of life, which is the most urgent direction for residents to pursue. It mainly covers an independent shower room, drainage organisation, an independent dining room, a living room, a shower area, sewage pipes and windows along the street, with an importance of 0.134–0.073. Attractive needs are located in the lower-right quadrant. Such indicators are manifested as weak negative sensitivity. However, the positive gain is the most prominent; the impact is limited when missing, but once it is achieved, it can significantly improve the quality and comfort of the house, which is a key factor in promoting residential quality upgrades. These include front-yard enclosure, wall insulation, improvements in ventilation and daylighting, safety protection, barrier-free facilities, and intergenerational bedroom zoning, with importance scores of approximately 0.126–0.025. Indifferent needs cluster in the lower-left quadrant, including parking, the kitchen area, and storage space. They have limited effects on both satisfaction improvement and dissatisfaction, indicating that residents currently pay relatively little attention to these factors.

Findings and discussion

The research results show that the living needs of Village S residents are mainly driven by “practical functionality” and “comfortable experience”; in contrast, needs related to safety and aesthetics are still in the early stages, while cultural and sustainable needs have not been widely valued. On the whole, the study reveals that the demand for suburban rural housing is gradually shifting from "function-oriented" to "quality-oriented", and residents are paying increasing attention to spatial efficiency, comfort, and the overall living experience.

Specifically:

High dependence on basic functional conditions—residents’ satisfaction is mainly affected by spatial expandability, climate adaptability and daily convenience, which are still the core factors that determine the quality of housing;
Preliminary expectations for quality improvement—although the priority of elements such as lighting, ventilation and ageing-friendly design is low, their improvement can significantly improve comfort and overall satisfaction;
Limited attention to non-core functional space—storage space, entertainment room and courtyard-related functions have not yet become explicit needs, and the focus is still on basic living needs;
Implicit concern for residential safety—anti-slip, structural stability, anti-theft and other factors are classified as “charm attributes”, reflecting residents’ potential expectations for safety;
Limited acceptance of cultural and sustainable features—the demand for architectural styles and renewable energy facilities is limited by cost and cognition, indicating that sustainability awareness is still in the early stages;
Attention to the aesthetics of space is gradually rising—the beautification of door decoration, courtyards and indoor space has begun to be paid attention to, showing that the rural living environment is transforming towards aesthetic experience and quality of life.

The demand-oriented design strategy model proposed in this study outlines the evolution path of suburban rural residences from satisfying basic functions to improving quality of life, and then to strengthening cultural identity. The model divides the design strategy into four levels: Essential standards, Priority enhancements, Value-added features and Contextual options, and presents the focus of residential renewal from shallow to deep. First, ensure basic livability and construction feasibility; then improve the daily use experience; and finally, integrate into regional culture and identity.

Design strategies responding to residential needs

This article focuses on the necessary, expected and charming needs that have a significant impact on the satisfaction of villagers’ living, builds a decision-making chain of "strategic refining—program library construction—design constraints and proofreading—technical selection", and translates the demand response into a comparable and implementable technical scheme system. First of all, based on the residential field research data, carry out spatial status analysis and refine the design strategy, and then build a design scheme library based on the "Architectural Design Information Collection", "Shaanxi Province Rural Characteristic Residential Design Atlas" and other materials; on this basis, combine local construction policies and actual construction conditions to constrain and check, and complete The screening and landing matching of the technical path. For the non-differential needs that the villagers relatively ignore, conduct in-depth interviews to identify the reasons for their formation and applicable boundaries, and propose flexible design suggestions that can be selected based on the situation (T Fig. 10).

Fig. 10 — GT–KANO-Based demand-to-strategy translation and design technology selection workflow.

Accordingly, this article forms two types of achievements: one is 30 technical selections for themes such as land use and overall morphology control, functional space complementation and scale optimization, building physical performance and comfort improvement; the other is aimed at building form and style regulation, entrance interface and front yard space quality improvement, travel organization and parking. 19 flexible design suggestions for system optimization and other directions. Further combined with the GT-KANO demand classification, the design response system is mapped into four levels: the basic standard layer, the key enhancement layer, the value extension layer and the situational option layer. The order is sorted by the importance of the requirements, and it is clear within each layer to form a sequence of suggestions with operational priority. Among them, the basic standard layer and the key upgrade layer correspond to the necessary and expected attributes identified in the demand analysis, which are the core constraints affecting residential satisfaction and safety. This article will systematically and comprehensively interpret the two indicators; the value extension layer corresponds to the charm attributes, which mainly reflect the role of value-added and differentiation. This article’s key indicators are explained in a targeted manner; the situational option layer corresponds to the non-differential attribute, and its marginal impact on satisfaction is relatively limited, so only the necessary definitions and brief analyses are provided.

Essential standards

The essential standard layer aggregates the basic construction points that villagers pay the most attention to, which mainly correspond to the Must-be needs. The lack of them will significantly cause dissatisfaction, and the marginal improvement of satisfaction after satisfaction is limited, thus constituting the basic constraints and necessary conditions that need to be prioritized in the design scheme. Based on the ranking of importance, the optimization should first focus on the main control chain of "shape-space organization" of residential orientation (0.133), area expansion (0.105), and layer control (0.099), to prioritize stabilizing the overall volume and functional pattern. On this basis, coordinate and promote the courtyard setting (0.090), roof attachment (0.078), eaves configuration (0.076), and other structures and adjustments to interface details. The above factors jointly determine the overall form and spatial organization logic of the house and directly impact climate response performance and living comfort, including lighting and ventilation, rain and snow protection, and the thermal environment.

In terms of spatial organization, the orientation of the newly built main facade should be given priority to a true north–south axis; when subject to the site restrictions, the true north–south axis is allowed to deviate from the south and the north direction by no more than 8°; if the east–west direction needs to be arranged, it is allowed to deviate from the east and the west direction by no more than 10°. Given that the approved homestead area size is below 133 m², it is appropriate to adopt 2–3 floors of vertical organization, and the first floor forms a closed loop suitable for the elderly and controls the proportion of semi-outdoor area; the renovation focuses on optimizing the proportion of indoor area allocation, giving priority to expanding high-frequency public spaces such as guest meals on the first floor, or achieving equivalent capacity expansion through space reorganization. In terms of courtyards, the transformation replaces the indoor expansion with "efficiency improvement in the courtyard" and improves the efficiency of composite utilization through functional replacement; the new construction streamlines the courtyard layout, cancels the atrium, the backyard is the main composite courtyard, and the front yard is used for entrance buffering and interface management. In terms of thermal performance, the new construction integrates the roof and photovoltaic facilities and centrally arranges the roof equipment to maintain the appearance; the renovation prioritizes the double-layer roof, focusing on covering the main living spaces, such as the living room and the elderly’s bedroom. For eaves, the minimum reference value for newly built eaves should be 1070 mm, and the eaves overhang depth should be determined based on the need for sun and rain protection in different directions (As shown in Table 5).

Table 5.

Demand-driven design strategies for essential standards.

Demand type		Importance ranking and design priority	Current state of space	Transformation strategy	New strategy
Essential Standards	Residential north–south orientation	0.133 (1)	① Survey the types of residential orientation angles (South-facing main facade orientation angles: 172°, 178°; North-facing main facade orientation angles: 352°, 358°; East-facing main facade orientation angles: 82°, 88°, 80°; West-facing main facade orientation angles: 252°, 258°, 260°)		If conditions permit, the residential orientation should be prioritized as south-north facing, with the south/north facing range controlled within ± 8°, and east/west facing within ± 10°. (The orientation deviation complies with the "Energy Efficiency Design Standards for Residential Buildings in Cold and Severe Cold Regions")
	Residential area expansion	0.105 (2)	① Average building area: 289 square meters ② Average area of the first floor: 213 square meters ③ Average indoor space area of the first half floor: 55.08 square meters ④ Family structure: Three generations living together	Optimize the indoor area allocation by prioritizing the expansion of high-frequency public spaces such as the living room and dining room on the first floor. Achieve equivalent expansion through spatial reorganization, and if the functionality is still insufficient, implement partial external expansion	Due to the constraint that the approved area for new residential land is less than 133m² (with the average land area of sample villages being 295m²), new residential buildings should adopt a vertical organization of 2–3 floors to meet spatial requirements. The first floor should form an age-friendly living loop, and the proportion of semi-outdoor space area should be controlled
	Residential floor control	0.099 (3)	① Residential floors: one and a half floors
	Courtyard setting	0.090 (4)	① Number of courtyards: 3 (average outdoor front yard area of 50.1 square meters, average indoor atrium area of 32.3 square meters, average indoor backyard area of 101.7 square meters)	The number and area of courtyards are relatively large, and "in-courtyard efficiency improvement" should be adopted instead of "indoor expansion."	Due to the constraints of residential land approval, the courtyard system should be reduced and integrated. The central courtyard should be eliminated, with the backyard serving as the main multifunctional courtyard, while the front yard is retained for entrance buffering and interface management
	Roof attachments	0.078 (5)	① 58.8% of residential buildings form double layered roofs above the living room by adding lightweight color steel tiles	Prioritize the use of a double-layer roof as the preferred method for roof thermal improvement, with a focus on covering the roofs above living spaces such as the living room and elderly bedrooms	The double-layer roof concept should be prioritized, designed as an integrated roofing system. The option of "color steel tile extension" should be upgraded to "photovoltaic integrated roofing" as the preferred choice. Rooftop equipment should be centrally arranged, and visible interfaces should be controlled to ensure a tidy appearance
	Roof overhang setting	0.076 (6)	① Roof form: flat roof, sloping roof ② Average length of eaves raised: 1070 mm		Set 1070 mm as the “reference value” and establish an adjustable range, while maintaining façade coordination. (In accordance with the "Green Building Evaluation Technical Guidelines (Revised)")

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(The "Energy Efficiency Design Standards for Residential Buildings in Cold and Severe Cold Regions": Residential orientation range of south/north facing ± 30°, east/west facing ± 60°).

(The "Green Building Evaluation Technical Guidelines (Revised)" of Shaanxi Province Engineering Construction Standards: Residential canopy projections should not be less than 1 m).

The average data is sourced from field surveys.

Figure 11 focuses on the three key issues of the roof, eaves and courtyard of typical residences, and puts forward the roof addition of the "double-layer insulation roof system", the optimization of the eaves form and the outward depth (such as curve eaves), as well as the transformation paths such as courtyard layout adjustment and functional replacement (such as the introduction of parking), so as to improve the thermal engineering performance and the composite utilization efficiency of the courtyard.

Fig. 11 — Typical spatial nodes and optimization strategies under the basic standard layer.

Priority enhancement

The priority enhancements correspond to the One-dimensional needs, and their degree of achievement is positively related to satisfaction. The improvement can yield significant satisfaction gains, thus constituting the priority control level in design optimization and the key investment in resource allocation. Specifically, the optimization of this layer should be carried out around the two main lines of residential high-frequency behavior scenarios, namely "wet area system improvement" and "public space order reconstruction". Prioritize the systematic configuration of the independent shower (0.134) and indoor atrium drainage (0.098), by clarifying the dry and wet zoning and improving the rain and sewage collection and drainage system. In addition, in response to the high-frequency use needs of the guest dining space, implement the boundary construction of the dining area (0.096) and the scale and proportion of the living room (0.095). Reduce interference caused by overlapping guest arrivals and dining functions, and optimize the order of daily traffic and use. On this basis, we will further implement measures such as quality control of the use of the shower room (0.089), the improvement of the sewage pipe network connection (0.084) and the height control of the window sill along the street (0.073), strengthen the connection between indoor drainage and the pipe network, and optimize the key details such as the cover and private control of the windows along the street.

In terms of the wet area system, the transformation gives priority to the implementation of independent showers (washstands in front and laundry outside); the new shower room should take geometric squareness as the shape control principle, and the upper limit of the time-width ratio of the house type can be relaxed to 2.8:1. Meanwhile, the location is validated using space-syntax indices, with the target topological depth maintained at around 3, which represents a moderate range. In terms of drainage and pipe network, the atrium will be upgraded from "single-point drainage" to "main drainage-secondary-inlet water interception" for systematic collection and drainage, and the connection of the sewage pipe network will be improved synchronously. In terms of public space, the transformation aims to address the problem that the depth-to-width ratio in residential dining rooms is greater than 1.50, and the strategy of "shortening effective depth" is adopted to divide the back of the living room into a dining area or a storage belt. For new construction, the integrated living–dining layout is retained, while the dining zone boundary is strengthened. The living room depth-to-width ratio should be controlled within 1.5–2.0; under floor-plan constraints, the upper limit may be relaxed to 2.31:1. In terms of the interface along the street, the transformation is to divide the large windows under the premise that the average height of the window sill is acceptable, and the upper and side are centrally opened and superimposed on the grille and greening buffer; the new adjacent street interface should be based on the height of 1.55 m window sill, and combined with the covering components to improve the indoor privacy (As shown in Table 6).

Table 6.

Demand-driven design strategies for priority enhancements.

Demand type		Importance ranking	Current state of space	Transformation strategy	New strategy
Priority Enhancements	Independent shower room setup	0.134(1)	① Shower room functions: laundry, shower, washing	Dry wet separation: Separate the shower area with glass and create a separate “wet core”; Functional zoning: washbasin in dry area, shower in wet area; Try not to put the washing machine in the shower room
	·	0.098(2)	① Indoor atrium functions: reception, laundry, dining, storage, tricycle, sedan parking; ② Average number of drainage outlets in the atrium: 1.1	The drainage system has been upgraded from a "single-point" to a “systematic” three-level strategy: main drain—secondary drain—entrance interceptor. The main drain is set at the low point of the wet areas to collect the primary runoff, while the secondary drain is placed at the boundary of the opposite/dry areas to handle peak flows and emergencies. A linear interceptor trench is set inside the entrance to capture rainwater and sediment
	Independent restaurant setup	0.096(3)	① Restaurant setup: 94.1% surveyed residential and dining integrated	By setting half-height partitions, transparent grids, or sliding curtains, and supplementing with floor, ceiling, and lighting zoning treatments, clear and perceptible boundaries are established for the dining area	The new design can continue the "open living and dining" concept, but the boundaries of the dining area should be reinforced through partitions, lighting, floor, and ceiling treatments to enhance its recognizable separation, thereby improving the relative independence of the dining space. The living room’s depth-to-width ratio should be controlled between 1.5 and 2 (when space is limited, the maximum ratio can be relaxed to 2.31:1)
	Living room expansion	0.095(4)	① Average living room area: 24.86 square meters; ② 90% of the surveyed residential living rooms have a depth to width ratio greater than 1.50 (maximum 2.31:1)	"Shorten the effective depth": Convert the deeper areas into dining, storage, or multifunctional spaces
	Quality control of shower room usage	0.089(5)	① Average shower area: 5.61 square meters; ② 100% research shows that the depth to width ratio of residential shower rooms is greater than 1.31:1 (maximum ratio 2.8:1); ③ Average depth of shower room topology: 2.9 (maximum depth of residential space unit: 5.8)	Compress invalid depth and reconstruct wet and dry zones	The newly designed shower room should adopt geometric regularity control (when space is limited, the maximum ratio can be relaxed to 2.8:1). Additionally, the shower room’s area should be limited to a maximum of 5.61m², with its spatial syntax topological depth set within a moderate inward range of approximately 3
	Connection of sewage pipeline network	0.084(6)	① Connection rate of sewage pipeline network: 6%
	Window height along the street interface	0.073(7)	① Average height of window sills along the street: 1.3 m; ② Average height difference between homestead and street: 0.9 m; ③ Average window area along the street: 3 square meters	Control the window design by dividing large windows into multiple narrow ones, with operable sashes concentrated at the upper or side portions. Add external shading, grids, or green hedges to the windows, forming an interface of "street—buffer—interior." For new construction, it is recommended that the height of street-facing window sills be around 1.55 m (at the eye level of a standing person). For renovations, the function replacement strategy for street-facing spaces can be used to adjust the room functions and window interfaces along the street

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(Architectural design data collection: The depth-to-width ratio of the living room connected to the dining room is generally between 3:2 and 2:1 (≈1.50 to 2.00)).

The average data is sourced from field survey data processing.

Figure 12 focuses on the three key issues of guest dining mixing, bathroom composite and functional zoning disorder in typical residences, and puts forward a set of spatial reconstruction paths that can be learned from: at the public space level, the functional separation of the living room and dining room and dining room can be realized by setting up partitions, and the “mixed living” is transformed into a clear guest and dining zoning. At the wet area level, given the current overlap between the shower and staircase spaces, an independent shower area is established by adjusting the stairs and extending the partition wall. At the residential-unit level, to address issues such as street-facing bedrooms and inefficient storage spaces, functional substitution is adopted—for example, converting unsuitable bedrooms into dedicated activity rooms, or reorganizing underused storage rooms with bedrooms or sanitary units—to improve privacy and use efficiency, thereby enhancing the orderliness of daily activity patterns and overall spatial quality.

Fig. 12 — Interior space optimization strategies under the priority enhancement layer.

Value-added features

The first two layers of the value extension layer are based on the premise of meeting the standard, focusing on value-added items that significantly improve satisfaction in meeting the standard. It is characterized by "significant points when available, and usually does not cause obvious dissatisfaction when missing", so it is mainly used to support differentiated value-added and quality improvement. To facilitate interpretation and strategy translation, this study classifies the indicators of this layer into three categories: "thermal industry, wet and heat, lighting safety—residential organization and renewal". Within the hygrothermal category, key items include exterior-wall insulation (0.121) and shower-room ventilation and dehumidification measures (0.119). These measures aim to improve the thermal performance of the building envelope and reduce moisture and mold risks in wet areas. Lighting safety category covers living room natural lighting (0.116), bedroom natural lighting (0.107), indoor floor anti-slip paving (0.091), structural load-bearing and earthquake-resistant safety (0.079), barrier-free facility setting (0.076), anti-theft door and window setting (0.07 6) and the size of the stairwell (0.025), mainly to enhance the quality of the daytime light environment and the safety of use. The residential organization and renewal include the living room setting (0.073), the south-facing configuration of the elderly bedroom (0.065), the intergenerational bedroom zoning (0.060), and the independent study setting (0.053), indoor bathroom setting (0.049), interior finish update (0.046), indoor atrium finish update (0.042) and backyard floor hardening (0.033), aiming to optimize family life cycle adaptation, functional zoning organization and interface quality update.

Taking the selection of construction structural technology as an example, "structural bearing and seismic guarantee" is an urgent need, indicating that villagers regard structural safety as an implicit bottom line: the house should at least have the safety guarantee against collapse and allow living in peace. In the renovation of old houses, performance can be improved through reinforcement in a perceptible, verifiable way, thereby increasing residential satisfaction significantly. In new-build projects, structural safety is often taken for granted; only when the safety level exceeds expectations does it translate into added value and higher satisfaction. The "Atlas of Residential Design with Rural Characteristics in Shaanxi Province" provides a reference for selecting three construction systems for rural residences: brick-mixed, prefabricated concrete, and steel structure. In the meantime, the "Measures for the Administration of Rural Housing Construction in Shaanxi Province" clearly encourages the adoption of new construction technologies and green building materials. Considering the material supply and construction organization conditions in the Guanzhong area, compared with the assembly concrete scheme, which relies more on the complete industrial chain and lifting system, the steel structure is easier to land and offers advantages in terms of flexibility, construction period, self-weight, and recyclability. Therefore, this paper selects the steel structure system as a new demonstration. Structure.

In the new construction plan of S Village, the above three indicators are further integrated into the collaborative design framework of "passive thermal engineering—style lighting—structural safety—elderly-friendly zoning" (Fig. 13): through the roof and terrace, the external buffer of sunshade and rain protection is selected to form, and with the insulation of the exterior wall to build a stable enclosed thermal engineering boundary. Moreover, use full-height space, high-level side windows, and openable outer windows to organize the natural ventilation path of "facade horizontal air intake—atrium vertical exhaust," improving air exchange efficiency, strengthening moisture drainage in wet areas, and reducing the risk of condensation and mold at the source. At the structural level, an assembled steel structural system is adopted. H-shaped steel columns are used to form a clear load path and enhance seismic energy dissipation, thereby enabling flexible spatial adjustment. The residential level is oriented by intergenerational friendliness and aging. Through intergenerational separation of bedrooms, an independent bathroom configuration, and barrier-free details such as anti-slip floors and handrails, lighting, safety, and daily convenience are transformed into perceptible improvements in living quality.

Fig. 13 — Spatial environmental synergy optimization strategies under the value-added features layer.

Contextual options

The situational option layer corresponds to Indifferent needs, and its marginal impact on satisfaction is relatively limited, so it is not a priority object for unified configuration. It mainly embeds the scheme with contextual options and elastic reserved modules. In order to facilitate the definition of the content of the layer and support the subsequent situational selection, this study classifies the relevant indicators into three groups: the first group is the household-front yard interface and parking organization, including the front yard enclosure, the plane positioning of the courtyard gate, the parking position in the house, the interface update of the courtyard gate, the size of the courtyard gate and the setting of the front yard in the house; the second group comprises upgrade-ready configurations for the energy and roof system, including grid-connected rooftop photovoltaics, provision for charging facilities, roof form/type options, and roof-terrace guardrail installation; the third group is space form and home use elasticity, including residential floor height, residential style orientation, centralized flat layout, bedroom aspect ratio control, elderly bedroom guest composite, kitchen downsizing, courtyard area expansion, entertainment room setting, indoor storage room setting and indoor and outdoor partition storage.

Take the parking location as an example: "in-house parking" is classified as an indifferent need, mainly because its necessity is significantly affected by the number of vehicle owners and the frequency of returning home, and can be replaced by parking outside the yard or on the roadside. However, in terms of specific site selection, parking behavior is still driven by the psychology of "visual and controllable", and residents are more inclined to park vehicles in a position that is easy to see and take care of. Therefore, in renovation and new construction design, priority should be given to ensuring visual connection and proximity between the parking space and the main activity space, to improve the sense of security and convenience of daily use.

Conclusion

This article uses S Village in Xi’an’s suburbs as an example. It aims to renew suburban and rural residences in the context of urban–rural transformation, identify residents’ multi-level residential needs, and build a demand-oriented design strategy system.

Based on the demand interview text, this study adopts the Gounded theory of "open-axial-selective" three-level coding, follows the progressive path of "original expression-concept-category-core category" to gradually refine and operate demand indicators, and finally build a residential demand index system in S villages in the suburbs of Xi’an, covering security-related needs, utility-related needs, perceived comfort needs, spiritual and cultural needs and Sustainability-related needs five dimensions, forming roof terrace railing setting, wall insulation, courtyard setting, Interior decoration update, residential floor height and other 49 indicators. On this basis, this article converts the above 49 indicators into the measurement items of the KANO two-way questionnaire, sets up "functional/non-functional" pairs of questions for each indicator, and maps the interviewee’s answer combination into A, O, M, I and R according to the KANO evaluation matrix: the principle of maximum frequency of the whole sample is determined. The final attributes of the indicators. If there is a juxtaposition, it will be judged according to the priority rule M > O > A > I. Concurrently, the Better/Worse coefficient is calculated to delineate the direction and intensity of each indicator’s impact on improving satisfaction and reducing dissatisfaction, and the importance and priority analysis are completed accordingly. The research results show that the general demand of residents in S Village has evolved from “basic function” to “quality experience”. Practical functionality and a comfortable experience remain the dominant dimensions affecting satisfaction. Safety and aesthetic needs are gradually becoming explicit, while cultural and sustainable needs have not yet become general priorities but have shown growth potential. Accordingly, this article further builds a "demand-strategy" translation mechanism based on the hierarchical characteristics of KANO results. On the one hand, it is aimed at the must-be, one-dimensional, and attractive needs, and the demand is translated into implementable spatial organization and construction technology selection through the process of "strategy refinement—scheme modularization—constraint matching—technology settlement". For example, in the essential standard layer, essential items such as orientation, number of floors and courtyard are transformed into quantifiable space and thermal control thresholds. In the priority-enhancements layer, expected needs such as independent showers, drainage pipe networks, dining-space organization, and street-facing interfaces are translated into verifiable functional systems and spatial proportion parameters. In the value-expansion layer, attractive needs—such as structural-system upgrades—are further linked to regulatory standards and local material and construction conditions, forming an implementable pathway for technical selection. By contrast, for the indifferent needs, it is not included in the rigid optimization priority, but combined with in-depth interviews to identify the reasons and trigger conditions for its weakening, and instead reframe it as “trigger conditions – alternative pathways – configuration recommendations,” proposing a flexible scheme that can be activated on demand and scaled up or down depending on available resources and contextual constraints, thereby improving the interpretability and implementability of the overall strategy system.

In the past, residential optimization research was mostly carried out from the dimensions of spatial morphology, environmental performance and construction constraints, and derived design strategies accordingly: at the spatial morphological level, structural structure and streamline patterns are often analyzed with the help of architectural typology, spatial prototype and formal grammar^48–51; at the level of environmental performance, it is usually based on EnergyPlus, DesignBuilder and other platforms evaluate the performance of energy consumption, and quantitatively measure natural ventilation, lighting and thermal comfort^52,53; at the case comparison level, the spatial characteristics of different types of residences are summarized through horizontal comparison based on the typical residential plane composition^54–56; at the level of construction constraints, focus on land conditions, costs and standard requirements, and support design decision-making from the perspective of feasibility^57–59. This kind of path emphasizes the optimization of formal logic and physical performance, prefers technical refinement and parameter adjustment, and pays relatively limited attention to the identification of demand structure, attribute discrimination and the system connection with the needs of residents as the core. Additionally, although the study of residential needs provides important inspiration, the method path is still relatively scattered, and there is a problem of method fragmentation and insufficient theoretical correlation as a whole: a class adopts qualitative sociological methods to identify the demand dimension through in-depth interviews and induction analysis, and reveal the cognitive framework and expectation model of residents^60,61. Another type of quantitative modeling based on questionnaire data establishes a demand relationship structure through satisfaction measurement and demand hierarchy sorting⁶². The former helps to deeply grasp the motivation and situational logic of demand, but it is difficult to assign comparable levels of importance to different needs; the latter can achieve structured measurement and sorting, but is limited by the preset scale and questionnaire design. It is often difficult to fully describe the generation process of demand and its dynamic complexity.

Starting from residents’ needs, this research provides empirical support for prioritizing decision-making in urban and rural residential design optimization and addresses the shortcomings of existing research in the identification and expression of demand structure. At the same time, there are still certain limitations in this article: first, the study takes a single village as a sample, and the demand data is mainly filled in the household integration and the representativeness of the householder, which may weaken the portrayal of individual differences in the household and the dynamics of the family consultation process; second, the current analysis still centers on demand-side indicators, while the systematic integration of external constraints—such as spatial form, construction technologies, and social organization—remains insufficient; third, the "demand-strategy" translation framework still lacks a closed-loop test of transformation practice and post-occupancy evaluation. In order to improve the applicability and promotion value of the model, follow-up research can be promoted from the following aspects: (1) Expand the sample range and carry out cross-regional comparisons to test the generalization and robustness of the GT-KANO model in different regions; (2) Introduce within-household stratified sampling and differentiate groups by generation, gender, and other characteristics to capture differences in needs and household negotiation mechanisms, thereby improving the granularity of demand identification; (3) Incorporate more factors such as spatial form, construction technology and social organization to achieve more comprehensive and multi-goal residential design optimization; (4) Further open up a complete closed loop from model construction to design implementation, from post-occupancy evaluation to feedback adjustment, so as to verify the effectiveness of the framework in practice.

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) (Project Code: FRGS/1/2025/WAS09/UKM/02/1) and Tabung Agihan Penyelidikan (TAP) (Project Code: TAP-K012951).

Appendix

Author contributions

Linjie Yang: Conceptualisation, investigation, methodology, software, validation, visualisation, formal analysis, data curation, and writing—original draft, Review & editing. Kamarul Afizi Kosman: Supervision, Review & editing. Yunfei Liu: Investigation, Review & editing, data curation. Azimin Samsul Mohd Tazilan: Supervision.

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) (Project Code: FRGS/1/2025/WAS09/UKM/02/1) and by Tabung Agihan Penyelidikan (TAP) (Project Code: TAP-K012951).

Data availability

The datasets utilised and analysed in this research can be obtained from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Footnotes

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

References

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2.Koomen, E. et al. An integrated global model of local urban development and population change. Comput. Environ. Urban Syst.100, 101935 (2023). [Google Scholar]
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5.Zhao, Q. et al. Multifunction change of rural housing land in metropolitan suburbs from the perspective of farmer households’ land-use behavior. Land Use Policy119, 106206 (2022). [Google Scholar]
6.Latif, S. F. T. B. H. A. & Kosman, K. A. The serambi of negeri sembilan traditional malay house as a multifunctional space - role in custom (ADAT). Journal of Design and Built Environment17(2). 10.22452/jdbe.vol17no2.4 (2017).
7.Egidi, G. et al. Re-framing the latent nexus between land-use change, urbanization and demographic transitions in advanced economies. Sustainability13, 533 (2021). [Google Scholar]
8.Chen, B., Chen, Y., Chen, Y. & Gao, J. Model of demand of human settlement environment for rural houses in North China: A structural equation modeling approach. Buildings12, 926 (2022). [Google Scholar]
9.Reid, C., Martin, C., Rausch, C. & Raymond, S. E. L. What would it take to close the housing supply gap in the next five years, while addressing the Nation’s affordability, climate sustainability, and resiliency goals?. Hous. Policy Debate35, 583–599 (2025). [Google Scholar]
10.Akinwande, T. & Hui, E. C. M. Effective affordable housing provision in developing economies: a deductive analysis of informal housing strategies in lagos, nigeria. Cities10.1016/j.cities.2024.104964 (2024). [Google Scholar]
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13.Yue, L., Li, K. & Zhang, Y. Evaluating measures of jobs-housing proximity and their commuting impacts in Shanghai. Front. Built Environ.11, 1582198 (2025). [Google Scholar]
14.Del-Roio, I. G., Lorenz-Fontolan, B., Ramos-Esperidiao, A. & Iarozinski-Neto, A. Analysis of natural disaster risk perception and user satisfaction in residential context. Rev. Arquit. Bogota26, 109–121 (2024). [Google Scholar]
15.Ashhar, M. Z. M. & Lim, C. H. Thermal performance of residential roofs in Malaysia: experimental study using an indoor solar simulator. Buildings 14, (2024).
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18.Wang, C., Zhang, G. & Zhai, Y. Integrating AHP-entropy and IPA models for strategic rural revitalization: a case study of traditional villages in northeast China. Buildings10.3390/buildings15142475 (2025). [Google Scholar]
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20.Tumbillo Machacca, O. R., Almirón Cuentas, J. A., Bernedo Moreira, D. H. & Romero Carazas, R. Between tradition and comfort: the rural habitat as a livable shelter. Land Archit. 11 (2026).
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25.Khalil, M. H. From cave to cage? The evolution of housing complexity and the contemporary dead end for the human brain. Housing Theory Soc.10.1080/14036096.2024.2393694 (2025). [Google Scholar]
26.Love, J. S. Sensory spaces: sensory living – studio teaching the design of autism-friendly adult accommodation. Archnet-IJAR: Int. J. Archit. Res.16, 595–619 (2022). [Google Scholar]
27.Liu, X., Zhao, Y. & Wang, C. Decision indicators for urban old community renewal: a multi-stakeholder approach in guangze, china. J. Asian Archit. Build. Eng.10.1080/13467581.2025.2502683 (2025). [Google Scholar]
28.Tu, E. & Zhou, Y. Investigating preferences and influencing factors of age-friendly housing environments across different age groups using the Delphi-KANO model and entropy weight TOPSIS method. Front. Archit. Res.14, 899–913 (2025). [Google Scholar]
29.Yang, J., Liu, Y., Ren, S., Fu, W. & Qiu, Z. Quantifying the quality of outdoor space in high-intensity residential areas: A case study of Nanjing in China. Front. Archit. Res.14, 581–595 (2025). [Google Scholar]
30.Mokhtariyan Sorkhan, F., Roumi, S., Soltanzadeh Zarandi, M. & Ashraf Ganjouei, M. A. The impact of indoor environmental quality on occupant satisfaction in commercial buildings: A comparison of building expert opinions and residents’ experiences. Energies17, 1473 (2024). [Google Scholar]
31.Ibrahim, A. N. H., Borhan, M. N., Osman, M. H. et al. An Empirical Study of Passengers’ Perceived Satisfaction with Monorail Service Quality: Case of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Sustainability14(11), 6496 (2022).
32.Indraganti, M. & Humphreys, M. A. A comparative study of gender differences in thermal comfort and environmental satisfaction in air-conditioned offices in Qatar, India, and Japan. Build. Environ.206, 108297 (2021). [Google Scholar]
33.Bueno, A. M., Mendes Da Luz, I., Niza, I. L. & Broday, E. E. Hierarchical and K-means clustering to assess thermal dissatisfaction and productivity in university classrooms. Build. Environ.233, 110097 (2023). [Google Scholar]
34.Zhou, H. et al. Thermal demand characteristics of elderly people with varying levels of frailty in residential buildings during the summer. J. Build. Eng.84, 108654 (2024). [Google Scholar]
35.Salehi, M., Taheri, S. & Shabani, A. Regenerating historical districts through tactical urbanism: A case study of Sarpol neighborhood in Isfahan province, Iran. Front. Archit. Res.12, 1234–1245 (2023). [Google Scholar]
36.Turner, C. & Astin, F. Grounded theory: What makes a grounded theory study?. Eur. J. Cardiovasc. Nurs.20, 285–289 (2021). [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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38.Liu, Q., Gong, D. & Gong, Y. Index system of rural human settlement in rural revitalization under the perspective of China. Sci. Rep.12, 10586 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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Associated Data

This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Data Availability Statement

The datasets utilised and analysed in this research can be obtained from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

[CR1] 1.Zhao, Q., Jiang, G., Ma, W., Yang, Y. & Zhou, T. The production function socialization trend of rural housing land and its response to rural land planning in metropolitan suburbs from the perspective of rural space commodification. Front. Environ. Sci.10, 979698 (2022). [Google Scholar]

[CR2] 2.Koomen, E. et al. An integrated global model of local urban development and population change. Comput. Environ. Urban Syst.100, 101935 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR3] 3.Wu, W. & Lin, Y. The impact of rapid urbanization on residential energy consumption in China. PLoS One17, e0270226 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR4] 4.Li, K., Li, K., Liu, Y., Yue, L. & Jiang, X. Transition characteristics and driving mechanisms of rural settlements in suburban villages of megacities under policy intervention: A case study of Dayu village in Shanghai, China. Land12, 1999 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR5] 5.Zhao, Q. et al. Multifunction change of rural housing land in metropolitan suburbs from the perspective of farmer households’ land-use behavior. Land Use Policy119, 106206 (2022). [Google Scholar]

[CR6] 6.Latif, S. F. T. B. H. A. & Kosman, K. A. The serambi of negeri sembilan traditional malay house as a multifunctional space - role in custom (ADAT). Journal of Design and Built Environment17(2). 10.22452/jdbe.vol17no2.4 (2017).

[CR7] 7.Egidi, G. et al. Re-framing the latent nexus between land-use change, urbanization and demographic transitions in advanced economies. Sustainability13, 533 (2021). [Google Scholar]

[CR8] 8.Chen, B., Chen, Y., Chen, Y. & Gao, J. Model of demand of human settlement environment for rural houses in North China: A structural equation modeling approach. Buildings12, 926 (2022). [Google Scholar]

[CR9] 9.Reid, C., Martin, C., Rausch, C. & Raymond, S. E. L. What would it take to close the housing supply gap in the next five years, while addressing the Nation’s affordability, climate sustainability, and resiliency goals?. Hous. Policy Debate35, 583–599 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR10] 10.Akinwande, T. & Hui, E. C. M. Effective affordable housing provision in developing economies: a deductive analysis of informal housing strategies in lagos, nigeria. Cities10.1016/j.cities.2024.104964 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR11] 11.Zhang, Y. & Chung, H. Geographic extent of income-based residential segregation between and within the school districts in suzhou, china. J. Urban Aff.0, 1–21 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR12] 12.Masukujjaman, M., et al. Green home buying intention of Malaysian millennials: an extension of theory of planned behaviour. Buildings13(1), 9 (2023).

[CR13] 13.Yue, L., Li, K. & Zhang, Y. Evaluating measures of jobs-housing proximity and their commuting impacts in Shanghai. Front. Built Environ.11, 1582198 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR14] 14.Del-Roio, I. G., Lorenz-Fontolan, B., Ramos-Esperidiao, A. & Iarozinski-Neto, A. Analysis of natural disaster risk perception and user satisfaction in residential context. Rev. Arquit. Bogota26, 109–121 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR15] 15.Ashhar, M. Z. M. & Lim, C. H. Thermal performance of residential roofs in Malaysia: experimental study using an indoor solar simulator. Buildings 14, (2024).

[CR16] 16.Xie, K., Zhang, Y. & Han, W. Architectural heritage preservation for rural revitalization: typical case of traditional village retrofitting in China. Sustainability10.3390/su16020681 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR17] 17.Hasdi, H., Sulaiman, R. & Kosman, K. A. Conservation and relevance of Singgora roofs: Examining traditional architectural structures in Malaysia. Jurnal Kejuruteraan 37(8), 10 (2025).

[CR18] 18.Wang, C., Zhang, G. & Zhai, Y. Integrating AHP-entropy and IPA models for strategic rural revitalization: a case study of traditional villages in northeast China. Buildings10.3390/buildings15142475 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR19] 19.Mohamad Zaidi, N. H., Ashhar, M. Z. M. & Lim, C. H. Techno-Economic Analysis of Roof Insulation Strategies for Decarbonizing Commercial and Residential Buildings in Malaysia. Buildings14, 3933 (2024).

[CR20] 20.Tumbillo Machacca, O. R., Almirón Cuentas, J. A., Bernedo Moreira, D. H. & Romero Carazas, R. Between tradition and comfort: the rural habitat as a livable shelter. Land Archit. 11 (2026).

[CR21] 21.Rajendran, L. P. et al. The ‘peri-urban turn’: A systems thinking approach for a paradigm shift in reconceptualising urban-rural futures in the Global South. Habitat Int.146, 103041 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR22] 22.Study on energy retrofits for rural residential envelopes in northwest China | scientific reports. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-99284-2. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed]

[CR23] 23.Zou, D., Sun, C. & Gao, D. Multi-objective optimization-driven research on rural residential building design in Inner Mongolia region. Energies18, 1867 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR24] 24.Jiang, G., Zhang, Y., Li, C., Xu, Q. & Yu, X. Mixed-method study of the etiquette and custom cultural activity space and its construction wisdom in Bubeibu traditional village, Yuxian County, China. J. Asian Archit. Build. Eng.23, 2101–2114 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR25] 25.Khalil, M. H. From cave to cage? The evolution of housing complexity and the contemporary dead end for the human brain. Housing Theory Soc.10.1080/14036096.2024.2393694 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR26] 26.Love, J. S. Sensory spaces: sensory living – studio teaching the design of autism-friendly adult accommodation. Archnet-IJAR: Int. J. Archit. Res.16, 595–619 (2022). [Google Scholar]

[CR27] 27.Liu, X., Zhao, Y. & Wang, C. Decision indicators for urban old community renewal: a multi-stakeholder approach in guangze, china. J. Asian Archit. Build. Eng.10.1080/13467581.2025.2502683 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR28] 28.Tu, E. & Zhou, Y. Investigating preferences and influencing factors of age-friendly housing environments across different age groups using the Delphi-KANO model and entropy weight TOPSIS method. Front. Archit. Res.14, 899–913 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR29] 29.Yang, J., Liu, Y., Ren, S., Fu, W. & Qiu, Z. Quantifying the quality of outdoor space in high-intensity residential areas: A case study of Nanjing in China. Front. Archit. Res.14, 581–595 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR30] 30.Mokhtariyan Sorkhan, F., Roumi, S., Soltanzadeh Zarandi, M. & Ashraf Ganjouei, M. A. The impact of indoor environmental quality on occupant satisfaction in commercial buildings: A comparison of building expert opinions and residents’ experiences. Energies17, 1473 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR31] 31.Ibrahim, A. N. H., Borhan, M. N., Osman, M. H. et al. An Empirical Study of Passengers’ Perceived Satisfaction with Monorail Service Quality: Case of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Sustainability14(11), 6496 (2022).

[CR32] 32.Indraganti, M. & Humphreys, M. A. A comparative study of gender differences in thermal comfort and environmental satisfaction in air-conditioned offices in Qatar, India, and Japan. Build. Environ.206, 108297 (2021). [Google Scholar]

[CR33] 33.Bueno, A. M., Mendes Da Luz, I., Niza, I. L. & Broday, E. E. Hierarchical and K-means clustering to assess thermal dissatisfaction and productivity in university classrooms. Build. Environ.233, 110097 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR34] 34.Zhou, H. et al. Thermal demand characteristics of elderly people with varying levels of frailty in residential buildings during the summer. J. Build. Eng.84, 108654 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR35] 35.Salehi, M., Taheri, S. & Shabani, A. Regenerating historical districts through tactical urbanism: A case study of Sarpol neighborhood in Isfahan province, Iran. Front. Archit. Res.12, 1234–1245 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR36] 36.Turner, C. & Astin, F. Grounded theory: What makes a grounded theory study?. Eur. J. Cardiovasc. Nurs.20, 285–289 (2021). [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR37] 37.Madzík, P., Shahin, A., Zimon, D. & Yadav, N. Requirements classification in KANO model – from strict categories to satisfaction and dissatisfaction potential. Total Qual. Manag. Bus. Excell.35, 1418–1438 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR38] 38.Liu, Q., Gong, D. & Gong, Y. Index system of rural human settlement in rural revitalization under the perspective of China. Sci. Rep.12, 10586 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR39] 39.Jiang, X. et al. Defining rural types nearby large cities from the perspective of urban–rural integration: a case study of Xi’an metropolitan area, China. Land14, 602 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR40] 40.Hu, Y., He, Y. & Li, Y. Urban spatial development based on multisource data analysis: A case study of Xianyang city’s integration into Xi’an international metropolis. Sustainability14, 4090 (2022). [Google Scholar]

[CR41] 41.Zhang, N., Wang, C. & Wang, D. Research on the rural revitalization path of traditional villages—Taking group 4 of Sunjiabao village, Konggang new city, Xixian new district as an example. Urban Dev. Res.26, 109–115 (2019). [Google Scholar]

[CR42] 42.Lex, H., Price, P. & Clark, L. Qualitative study identifies life shifts and stress coping strategies in people with multiple sclerosis. Sci. Rep.12, 6536 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR43] 43.Li, Y. et al. Factors influencing compliance in RRD patients with the face-down position via grounded theory approach. Sci. Rep.12, 20320 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR44] 44.Hennink, M. & Kaiser, B. N. Sample sizes for saturation in qualitative research: A systematic review of empirical tests. Soc. Sci. Med.292, 114523 (2022). [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR45] 45.Yang, Y., Li, Q., Li, C. & Qin, Q. User requirements analysis of new energy vehicles based on improved KANO model. Energy309, 133134 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR46] 46.Malinka, C., von Jan, U. & Albrecht, U.-V. Prioritization of quality principles for health apps using the KANO model: Survey study. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth10, e26563 (2022). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR47] 47.Koomsap, P. & Hussadintorn Na Ayutthaya, D. Incorporating reverse quality dimensions for comprehending customer perception of fulfilment in KANO better and worse indices. J. Eng. Des.36, 525–549 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR48] 48.Wang, L., Janssen, P. & Ji, G. Optimization-based design exploration of building massing typologiesdEvoMass and a typology-oriented computational design optimization method for early-stage performance-based building massing design. Front. Archit. Res.13, 1400–1422 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR49] 49.Wang, J., Fan, W., Zhao, B., Yang, Y. & Zhang, Z. A rule-based design approach to generate mass housing in rural areas of the North China Plain. Buildings13, 2539 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR50] 50.Carnieletto, L. et al. Italian prototype building models for urban scale building performance simulation. Build. Environ.192, 107590 (2021). [Google Scholar]

[CR51] 51.Wen, Q., Zhao, Y., Huang, X. & Wang, G. A digital analysis of the “L”-shaped Tujia dwellings in Southeast Chongqing based on shape grammar. Buildings15, 900 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR52] 52.Liu, Y., Ghazali, M. A., Yang, L. & Chen, Y. Sustainable passive design in cold regions: Energy and thermal evaluation of traditional Zhuangke dwellings — In Qinghai province, China. Energy Build.344, 115969 (2025). [Google Scholar]

[CR53] 53.Liu, Y., Chen, Y., Yang, L., He, D. & Ghazali, M. A. Multiobjective optimisation of passive energy saving strategies in Zhuangke dwellings in Huangyuan County, China. Sci. Rep.15, 26285 (2025). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

[CR54] 54.Ali Mustafa, F. & Abubaker Ali, L. Common architectural characteristics of traditional courtyard houses in Erbil city. Ain Shams Eng. J.15, 103003 (2024). [Google Scholar]

[CR55] 55.Monzur, N. & Jany, M. R. Sustaining traditionalism: an investigation into the vernacular transformation of the khasi tribal houses of sylhet. Archnet-ijar: Int. J. Archit. Res.17, 70–87 (2023). [Google Scholar]

[CR56] 56.Zivkovic, M., Kondic, S., Tanic, M., Stamenkovic, M. & Kekovic, A. Flexibility and current housing conditions in Serbia: A case study of the city of Nis. Teh. Vjesn. Tech. Gaz.29, 401–407 (2022). [Google Scholar]

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PERMALINK

Grounded theory-KANO model for optimising peri-urban rural housing design

Linjie Yang

Kamarul Afizi Kosman

Yunfei Liu

Azimin Samsul Mohd Tazilan

Abstract

Introduction

Motivation

Literature review

Fig. 1.

Fig. 2.

Materials and methods

Fig. 3.

Location and geographical features

Fig. 4.

Data collection and organisation

Fig. 5.

Fig. 6.

Fig. 7.

Table 1.

Fig. 8.

Data analysis

Establishing the residential needs classification and prioritization model

Table 2.

Table 3.

Table 4.

Results

Model for classifying and prioritising residential needs

Fig. 9.

Findings and discussion

Design strategies responding to residential needs

Fig. 10.

Essential standards

Table 5.

Fig. 11.

Priority enhancement

Table 6.

Fig. 12.

Value-added features

Fig. 13.

Contextual options

Conclusion

Acknowledgments

Appendix

Author contributions

Funding

Data availability

Declarations

Competing interests

Footnotes

References

Associated Data

Data Availability Statement

ACTIONS

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RESOURCES

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