Office Type in Relation to Health, Well-Being, and Job Satisfaction Among Employees

Health statistics routinely show higher morbidity and health services use for women, while mortality rates are higher for men. This analysis empirically identifies reasons for women's poorer health. It is based on retrospective (interview) and prospective (health diaries) data from the Health In Detroit Study. Three kinds of risk factors, which may help explain females' excess, are considered: acquired risks, psychosocial aspects, and health-reporting behavior. Men and women differ markedly in acquired risks: smoking and job hazards are higher for men, but inactivity, nonemployment, stress, and many other factors are higher for women. Psychosocial aspects predispose women to more illness and health care. Women also had keener interest in the survey. When all of the risk factors are controlled, the morbidity gap narrows considerably. In fact, indicators of general and chronic health reverse to reveal higher morbidity for men. Similarly, females' excesses for therapeutic care (short- and long-term disability, medical visits, lay consultation, drug use) diminish when risks and morbidity level are controlled. They actually reverse to a male excess for disability and medical care. Though most of the unveiled male excesses are statistically nonsignificant, their pattern allows a reasonable interpretation. Our results are closely compatible with recent analyses of sex mortality differences in several California sites, which could not eliminate men's mortality excess by controlling for social factors. In conclusion, contemporary women's poorer health profile stems largely from their roles and stress (acquired risks), and to a smaller degree from their health attitudes. When social factors are taken into account, health data suggest a disadvantage for men, and mortality data maintain men's disadvantage. Do the reasons lie in biology?

Conventional and innovative office concepts can be described according to three dimensions: (1) the office location (e.g. telework office versus conventional office); (2) the office lay-out (e.g. open lay-out versus cellular office); and (3) the office use (e.g. fixed versus shared workplaces). This review examined how these three office dimensions affect the office worker's job demands, job resources, short- and long-term reactions. Using search terms related to the office concept (dimensions), a systematic literature search starting from 1972 was conducted in seven databases. Subsequently, based on the quality of the studies and the consistency of the findings, the level of evidence for the observed findings was assessed. Out of 1091 hits 49 relevant studies were identified. Results provide strong evidence that working in open workplaces reduces privacy and job satisfaction. Limited evidence is available that working in open workplaces intensifies cognitive workload and worsens interpersonal relations; close distance between workstations intensifies cognitive workload and reduces privacy; and desk-sharing improves communication. Due to a lack of studies no evidence was obtained for an effect of the three office dimensions on long-term reactions. The results suggest that ergonomists involved in office innovation could play a meaningful role in safeguarding the worker's job demands, job resources and well-being. Attention should be paid, in particular, to effects of workplace openness by providing acoustic and visual protection.

Psychological and physiological stress responses related to work and family were investigated in 21 female and 21 male managers and professional specialists in high-ranking positions. The main result was that both women and men experienced their jobs as challenging and stimulating, although almost all data indicated a more favorable situation for men than for women. In addition, women were more stressed by their greater unpaid workload and by a greater responsibility for duties related to home and family. Women had higher norepinephrine levels than men did, both during and after work, which reflected their greater workload. Women with children at home had significantly higher norepinephrine levels after work than did the other participants. The possible long-term health consequences of women's higher stress levels are discussed.