Revealing walking experiences for shading based gendered perceptions of thermal comfort in a hot city

Urban pedestrian environments shape subjective thermal comfort under intensifying heat stress; however, the pathway through which shading translates into walking experience remains insufficiently specified, particularly regarding potential gender heterogeneity. This study examines how perceived shade quality relates to subjective thermal perception, walking satisfaction, and duration of public-space use in Macau. A mixed-method design integrates climate-informed solar-access screening and on-site surveys, and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling is applied to test a perception-led mediation structure with female–male multi-group comparison. Results indicate that shade quality contributes to walking satisfaction primarily through subjective thermal perception, while duration-related effects are more contingent. Multi-group tests show that the core behavioural paths are statistically comparable across groups, whereas gender-sensitive differences are detected in the perceptual linkage between shade quality and subjective thermal perception and, more clearly, in the associations between subjective thermal perception and concurrent microclimatic indicators (relative humidity, air temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation). These findings support heat-responsive shading strategies that prioritise perceptual thermal relief through shade continuity while providing microclimatic options that accommodate heterogeneous regulation under hot-humid exposure.