Architectural-psychological design of working environments

Abstract

This contribution to the journal “Gruppe. Interaktion. Organisation. (GIO)” aims to provide an overview of the state of research on application-oriented (re)design of work environments from the field of architectural psychology. Due to digitalisation and the increasing location-independence of work, work environments in the organisation are increasingly becoming a pivotal point of organisational cooperation. Such “organisational hubs” should therefore be purposefully designed. Which architectural design elements are relevant for this context and how can their outcomes be theoretically justified? The review provides approaches that appear suitable for this specific application. A special focus is placed on the effects of design elements on well-being and performance of employees. On this basis, a concise summary of the existing, heterogeneous findings on individual architectural psychology design elements is presented. As a result of the limited literature review, a research deficit regarding the integration, interactions and weighting of the individual elements can be identified, which must be addressed in future research and practice.