Windows in the Workplace

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• Windows in the Workplace
• Sunlight and Occupational Stress

By Phil Leather, Mike Pyrgas, Di Beale, Claire
Lawrence
Group 5 Melissa Czaja Stacey Hubbard Robert
Kamieniarz Jessica Sinal Guy Spineti
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Introduction

• This article investigates the direct and indirect
  effects of windows in the workplace on job
  satisfaction, intention to quit, and general
  well-being.

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Illumination and Sunlight

• The visibility on perceptual tasks and processes
  is largely effected by illumination level and
  performance.

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View

• A previous study found that access to nearby
  nature was associated with lower levels of
  perceived job stress and higher levels of job
  satisfaction. Workers with a view from their
  desk of natural elements, such as trees and
  flowers, reported less stress and more job
  satisfaction than colleagues who either had no
  outside view or could see only built elements
  from their window.

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The Window as a Possible Buffer Against Job Stress

• Researchers argue that any feature of the
  physical environment might work both directly on
  outcomes and interactively with either a
  psychosocial work elements or other physical
  elements.

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Control Variables

• Gender- influenced the effect of seating distance
  and room illumination on affective outcomes in
  small group interaction.

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Control Variables cont.

• Adaptation- people have a capacity to adapt to
  features of the physical environment is clearly
  shown by the piloerection that often accompanies
  a decrease in ambient temperature.

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Control Variables cont.

• Occupational Status- the disparity that exists
  between the characteristics of the physical work
  environments deemed necessary and appropriate for
  clerical as opposed to manual jobs and tasks.

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Research Goals

• The overall of this study was to investigate the
  impact of illumination, sunlight penetration, and
  view on job satisfaction, general well-being, and
  intention to quit.

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The Hypotheses

• Hypothesis 1 Greater sunlight penetration will
  be associated with higher job satisfaction,
  improved well-being, and a lesser intention to
  quit (main effects).
• Hypothesis 2 Views of a more rural character
  will be associated with higher job satisfaction,
  improved well-being, and a lesser intention to
  quit (main effects).
• Hypothesis 3 Greater sunlight penetration will
  buffer any negative effects of job strain on job
  satisfaction, well-being, and intention to quit
  (moderator effect).

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The Hypotheses cont

• Hypothesis 4 Views of a more rural character
  will buffer any negative effects of job strain on
  job satisfaction, well-being, and intention to
  quit (moderator effect). Because environmental
  elements might interact with each other as well
  as with psychosocial variables, we propose the
  following hypothesis
• Hypothesis 5 Sunlight penetration and view will
  interact in their influence on job satisfaction,
  well-being, and intention to quit

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Method

• A questionaire was completed by 100 employees who
  were working in a large wine-producing
  organization.
• The age of respondents ranged from 25 to 62
  years, with a mean of 41.8 years.

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Method Cont.

• The employees that were sampled worked in a range
  of buildings of various sizes and construction,
  including private and shared offices,
  laboratories, workshops, the brew-house, the
  bottling plant, warehouses. Lighting throughout
  the organization was provided by an array of
  fluoresent tubes of the warm-white type.

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Procedure

• Subjects were given the questionnaire and asked
  to read the instructions.They were instructed to
  work through the questionnaire at their own pace.
  The second author remained present throughout to
  answer any further queries should they arise.
  After the subjects completed the questionnaire
  they were informed that the study was concerned
  with investigating the effects of sunlight
  penetration and view on work attitudes, job
  stress, and employee well-being.

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Discussion

• The results reported in this article offer
  considerable support for the importance of
  windows in the workplace. They suggest, moreover,
  that the frequently reported desire for windows
  in the workplace is more than a matter of simple
  preference. Within this preference is a
  fundamental issue of emotional and psychological
  well-being.

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Measures

• Job Strain
• General level of illumination
• Sunlight penetration
• View
• Job Satisfaction
• Intention to quit
• Well-Being

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Results

• Hypothesis 1 receives a substantial amount of
  support in data.
• Hypothesis 2 recieves weak support from the
  data, with rural view being directly, but not
  marginally, related to intention to quit and the
  upright factor of general well-being.

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Results Cont.

• Hypothesis 3 was not supported by the data
  because area of sunlight penetration did not
  buffer any adverse effects of job strain. Two
  interaction effects were found, however, for
  rural view, which moderated the adverse impact of
  job strain on both upright factor of well-being
  and the intention to quit.

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Results Cont.

• Hypothesis 4 recieves some support in the data.
• Hypothesis 5 received no support in data.

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Personal Experiences

• Everyone has different personal experiences about
  everyday experiences in life but we all agreed
  that windows in the workplace was an absolute.
  We all felt that having a window in your office
  or even just in the entire building brought a
  sense of happiness to your everyday work
  experience.

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Essay Questions

• What were the seven measures and how where they
  supported?
• Did the results from the previous study correlate
  with the results from the study of Windows in the
  Workplace?