Efforts to equip office buildings with cutting-edge technology to measure and improve its energy performance have been going on for years. However, not only the building itself consumes energy, but the occupant influences this as well, i.e., their presence, interaction with and movement through the building. Sustainability studies have suggested that the solution to improving environmental sustainability of office, from the perspective of behavioural social science and environmental psychology, would be the transition to more user-centered smart real estate. In the Building and Environment field, similar approaches have been introduced, that occupant-centric building design and operation are also a solution for capturing occupancy and occupant behaviour.

A multidisciplinary literature review is conducted. Firstly identifying the theory, connotation, and application of occupant behaviour in both social science and engineering science respectively, e.g. Environmental real estate user behaviours versus Occupant adaptive behaviours. Secondly, the review identifies the most suitable theory from both scientific field which complement each other and enhances the interdisciplinary theory's synergy process.

This systematic literature review thus identifies the relevant knowledge of occupant behaviour in both fields and develops a theoretical framework for the term "Sustainability related occupant behaviour", as a catalyst to the synergy and knowledge exchange process between social science and engineering science.