Shrinking office space and other workstation environment factors are affecting worker morale and productivity as people feel that their status is threatened by an encroachment into 'their' space. This book draws together insights from environmental psychology, architecture and interior design to inform a new approach to the design and planning of work spaces, highlighting the conflicting demands made on and by managers, workers and designers. Showing how worker productivity and stress levels are affected by factors such as lighting, ventilation, temperature, noise and layout, this book demonstrates how the technical aspects of human comfort do not always tally with users' perceptions and behaviour. With vivid examples and case studies to illustrate how space is a corporate resource rather than simply overhead, Vischer reveals how companies can improve their ability to make design decisions on how best to accommodate their employees in a high quality workspace.

Expert in the psychology of workspace, well-known lecturer, and author of several previous books, Jacqueline C. Vischer is an Environmental Psychologist with significant practical and research experience in the corporate world. Her method of measuring the human impact of environmental conditions in offices is widely cited and used world-wide.