Abstract: BACKGROUND: A workplace's design can have various positive or
negative effects on the employees and since the 1970s the advantages and
disadvantages of open-plan offices have been discussed. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate perceived health, work environment and
self-estimated productivity one month before and at three, six and twelve
months after relocation from individual offices to an open-plan office
environment. METHODS: Employees from three departments within the same
company group and who worked with relatively similar tasks and who were planned
to be relocated from private offices to open-plan offices were invited to
participate. Questionnaires comprising items from The Salutogenic Health
Indicator Scale, The Work Experience Measurement Scale, the questionnaire by
Brennan et al. about perceived performance and one question from the Work
Ability Index were sent to participants one month before relocation (baseline)
to open-plan offices and then at three, six and twelve months after relocation.
At baseline, 82 questionnaires were sent out. The response rate was 85%. At
the follow-ups 77–79 questionnaires were sent out and the response-rate was
70%–81%. RESULTS: At follow-ups, perceived health, job
satisfaction and performance had generally deteriorated. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study indicate that employees' perception of health, work
environment and performance decreased during a 12 month period following
relocation from individual offices to open-plan offices.
Keywords: Ergonomics, work organization, health promotion, work performance, perceived health
