Indoor productivity measured by common response patterns to physical and psychosocial stimuli

The business case for a healthy office; a holistic overview of relations between office workspace design and mental health

The role of the physical workspace in employee mental health is often overlooked. As a (mentally) healthy workforce is vital for an organisation's success, it is important to optimise office workspace conditions. Previous studies on the effects of the physical workspace on mental health tended to focus on the effects of a specific element of the physical workspace on one or only a few mental health indicators. This study takes a more holistic approach by addressing the relationship of physical workspace characteristics with ten broad indicators of work-related mental health. Results of a systematic review of empirical evidence show that many aspects of (day)light, office layout/design, and temperature and thermal comfort have been proven to be related to many mental health indicators. Less tacit workspace characteristics (e.g., noise, use of colours) have been explored too, but so far have only been related to a few mental health indicators.Practitioner summary: The absence of holistic insights regarding the empirical proof of the effects of workspace design on employee mental health prevents a clear business case for workplace investments. This paper presents a content analysis of existing studies and shows how seven elements of workspace design relate to 10 mental health indicators.

“Make it possible for more people to work at home!” representations of employee motivation and job satisfaction in Danish and Norwegian newspapers during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees with task-based jobs were forced to work from home, while others were furloughed or laid off. The current study aims to investigate how Norwegian and Danish newspapers represent employee motivation and job satisfaction of remote workers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study used a thematic analysis of five newspapers from Norway and Denmark with different daily distributions and political orientations. The findings suggest that the newspapers in the two countries represented the topic of interest from different perspectives, and this led to the use of two motivation theories: the self-determination theory (SDT) and Herzberg’s two-factor theory. The SDT helps us understand why some employees feel motivated and are more productive while working from home. The need for autonomy, competence, and connectedness is being satisfied for some employees but not for all, which may affect the strength of employees’ job motivation. Herzberg’s theory helps explain physical and psychological issues as dissatisfiers, as these issues are the consequence of working in a home-based office. Furthermore, a hybrid model seems to be an optimal solution for the future job market, where employees with task-based jobs can feel motivated and job satisfied while working either from home or from the workplace. Finally, it is important for employers to look after both the physical and the psychosocial conditions if hybrid solutions are going to replace the traditional workplace.

The mystery of dry indoor air - An overview

"Dry air" is a major and abundant indoor air quality complaint in office-like environments. The causality of perceived "dry air" and associated respiratory effects continues to be debated, despite no clear definition of the complaint, yet, has been provided. The perception of "dry air" is semantically confusing without an associated receptor but mimics a proto-state of sensory irritation like a cooling sensation. "Dry air" may also be confused with another common indoor air quality complaint "stuffy air", which mimics the sense of no fresh air and of nasal congestion. Low indoor air humidity (IAH) was dismissed more than four decades ago as cause of "dry air" complaints, rather indoor pollutants was proposed as possible exacerbating causative agents during the cold season. Many studies, however, have shown adverse effects of low IAH and beneficial effects of elevated IAH. In this literature overview, we try to answer, "What is perceived "dry air" in indoor environments and its associated causalities. Many studies have shown that the perception is caused not only by extended exposure to low IAH, but also simultaneously with and possibly exacerbated by indoor air pollutants that aggravate the protective mucous layer in the airways and the eye tear film. Immanent diseases in the nose and airways in the general population may also contribute to the overall complaint rate and including other risk factors like age of the population, use of medication, and external factors like the local ambient humidity. Low IAH may be the single cause of perceived "dry air" in the elderly population, while certain indoor air pollutants may come into play among susceptible people, in addition to baseline contribution of nasal diseases. Thus, perceived "dry air" intercorrelates with dry eyes and throat, certain indoor air pollutants, ambient humidity, low IAH, and nasal diseases.

Measurements of workplace productivity in the office context

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive survey of workplace productivity key performance indicators (KPIs) used in the office context. Academic literature from the past 10 years has been systematically reviewed and contextualized through a series of expert interviews.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors present a systematic review of the literature to identify KPIs and methods of workplace productivity measurement, complemented by insights semi-structured interviews to inform a framework for a benchmarking tool. In total, 513 papers published since 2007 were considered, of which 98 full-length papers were reviewed, and 20 were found to provide significant insight and are summarized herein.

Findings

Currently, no consensus exists on a single KPI suitable for measuring workplace productivity in an office environment, although qualitative questionnaires are more widely adopted than quantitative tools. The diversity of KPIs used in published studies indicates that a multidimensional approach would be the most appropriate for knowledge-worker productivity measurement. Expert interviews further highlighted a shift from infrequent, detailed evaluation to frequent, simplified reporting across human resource functions and this context is important for future tool development.

Originality/value

This paper provides a summary of significant work on workplace productivity measurement and KPI development over the past 10 years. This follows up on the comprehensive review by B. Haynes (2007a), providing an updated perspective on research in this field with additional insights from expert interviews.

Necessity and effect of combating Legionella pneumophila in municipal shower systems

The objective was to obtain research-based, holistic knowledge about necessity and effect of practiced measures against L. pneumophila in municipal shower systems in Stavanger, Norway. The effects of hot water treatment and membrane-filtering were investigated and compared to no intervention at all. The studies were done under real-world conditions. Additionally, a surveillance pilot study of municipal showers in Stavanger was performed. The validity of high total plate count (TPC) as an indication of L. pneumophila was evaluated. A simplified method, named "dripping method", for detection and quantification of L. pneumophila was developed. The sensitivity of the dripping method is 5 colony-forming units of L. pneumophila/ml. The transference of L. pneumophila from shower water to aerosols was studied. Interviews and observational studies among the stakeholders were done in order to identify patterns of communication and behavior in a Legionella risk perspective. No substantial effects of the measures against L. pneumophila were demonstrated, except for a distally placed membrane filter. No significant positive correlation between TPC and L. pneumophila concentrations were found. L. pneumophila serogroup 2-14 was demonstrated in 21% of the 29 buildings tested in the surveillance pilot. Relatively few cells of L. pneumophila were transferred from shower water to aerosols. Anxiety appeared as the major driving force in the risk governance of Legionella. In conclusion, the risk of acquiring Legionnaires' disease from municipal shower systems is evaluated as low and uncertain. By eliminating ineffective approaches, targeted Legionella risk governance can be practiced. Risk management by surveillance is evaluated as appropriate.