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How can the physical environment, especially light, facilitate conflict resolution? Previous research has led to no clear answers about optimal lighting conditions in conflict situations and, until now, potential moderators and mediators have been scarcely investigated. Building on research on light-induced cooperativeness, we expected that self-oriented individuals would be influenced by the lighting in social situations such as conflict resolution. In self-oriented individuals, dim warm light should promote interdependent self-construal and, in turn, lead to a preference for collaborative conflict resolution strategies. Two studies confirmed our assumptions, with social dominance orientation and trait interdependent self-construal serving as indicators of individuals' social orientation. Overall, these results provide an explanation for inconsistent previous findings and contribute to the understanding of light-induced changes in social behavior. Limitations as well as practical implications for lighting design in social spaces are discussed.
Increasing and new work demands drain employees’ energy resources at work. This four-week longitudinal field experiment investigated the energizing potential of a respite intervention conducted at the workplace (either a simulated savoring nature intervention or a progressive muscle relaxation intervention). First, growth modeling analyses confirmed a linear trend for the growth of vigor and decline in fatigue across the days of the intervention group, indicating a typical upward resource trajectory. No changes appeared in the control group. Mediation analyses indicated that repeatedly engaging in a daily respite intervention influenced more stable energy levels after the intervention period indirectly through the immediate changes in daily energy levels during the intervention period. Findings suggest that, in some cases, respite interventions may present a useful tool to replenish and build energy resources at work. Implications for using respite intervention in organizational research and practice are discussed.
The aim of this study was to test the effects of a daily positive work reflection intervention on fostering personal resources (i.e., hope and optimism) and decreasing exhaustion (i.e., emotional exhaustion and fatigue) among caregivers for the elderly and caregivers who provide services at patients' homes. Using an intervention/waitlist control group design, 46 caregivers in an intervention group were compared with 44 caregivers in a control group at 3 points of measurement: pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at a 2-week follow-up. The results show that emotional exhaustion and fatigue were reduced for the intervention group. Primarily, caregivers with a high need for recovery at baseline benefited from the intervention. The results reveal no intervention effects for personal resources; however, they reveal a trend that the intervention led to an increase in hope and optimism among caregivers with a high need for recovery. Overall, the findings show that caregivers benefit from a daily positive work reflection intervention, particularly when their baseline levels of resources and well-being are low.
Research has shown that colours influence motivation and cognitive performance. In achievement contexts, red evokes avoidance motivation that hinders creativity, while blue elicits an approach motivation that facilitates creativity. However, due to their position and mode of presentation, colours may convey a different message. Red accent lighting creates a cosy, friendly room atmosphere that may, even in an achievement context, elicit an approach rather than an avoidance motivation. Results (N = 146) showed that both blue and red accent light increased strategic approach motivation compared to white accent light. Moreover, through the heightened approach motivation, colourful accent light indirectly improved creative performance. Implications for future research on colour and practical implications for colour usage are discussed. Practitioner Summary Designing work environments for creativity is a new topic in ergonomics research and practice. The present study demonstrates indirect effects of coloured accent light on creativity providing interesting possibilities for the design of work places for knowledge workers, classrooms, and all other rooms in which people work on new ideas.
Der Arbeitsplatz – die räumlichen, physikalischen und ergonomischen Bedingungen, unter denen Menschen arbeiten – kann auf vielfältige Weise die Gesundheit fördern und gefährden. Neben der direkten Wirkung auf die physische Gesundheit kann der Arbeitsplatz die Durchführung der Arbeitsaufgaben erleichtern oder behindern und das Wohlbefinden durch eine bedürfnisgerechte Gestaltung erhöhen. Die Gestaltung gesundheitsförderlicher Arbeitsplätze beinhaltet den Arbeitsraum und die dort herrschenden physikalischen Bedingungen ebenso wie die Möblierung und IT-Ausstattung.
The Covid-19 pandemic and the Online Access Act (Onlinezugangsgesetz – OZG) are forcing Germany's public administration to accelerate digital transformation in general and the digitalization of agencies on federal, state and municipal level in particular. To assess this endeavor’s progress, existing e-Government maturity models were evaluated. The majority of models mainly focus on technical characteristics of an administrative act, while disregarding the importance of (1) public servants, (2) their work situation and (3) organizational processes. It is the latter three determining successful digitalization. Consequently, we fuse previous e-Government maturity models with the individual perspective of public servants including internet-based work, virtualization of teams and societal participation. This paper describes the synthesis of a model, its advantages and limitations including next steps towards its empirical validation.
Germany's public administrations must go digital by law till 2022. The German Online Access Act (our translation for “Onlinezugangsgesetz”, OZG) forces most services offered by public administration on federal, federal state and municipal level to become digitized. For most of these services still being paper-based and Germany not being one of the leaders in e- government according to many sources, the question of user acceptance arises. For answering the question whether the approach used in the digitalization labs leads to the development of digital public services that are accepted by future users, we conducted a heuristic evaluation of a prototype that was developed within the implementation of the OZG. The paper describes the setting, the test undertaken and the outcome and concludes with an estimate, whether the huge paradigm change towards the development of digital public services that are accepted by future users will be successful or not.
To deal with stress and exhaustion at work, personal resources need to be replenished during breaks. The aim of this laboratory study (n = 122 students) was to test the restorative potential of sensory-enriched break environments (SEBEs) in a between-subjects with repeated measures design, focusing on the type of the environment (natural outdoor vs. built indoor environment) and sensory input (no sensory input vs. audiovisual input vs. audiovisual and olfactory input). Analyses showed that SEBEs simulating either a natural or a lounge environment were perceived as more pleasant and restorative (fascination/being away) than a standard break room, which in turn facilitated the recovery of personal resources (mood, fatigue, arousal). Moreover, adding a congruent scent to an audiovisual simulation indirectly facilitated the recovery of personal resources via greater scent pleasantness and higher fascination and being away. The current study shows opportunities for sensory enrichment to foster restoration in break environments. Practitioner Summery: This project reveals the impact of the recovery process of simulated environments on personal resources. Analyses confirmed that sensory-enriched environments were perceived as more restorative than less enriched environments, which in turn facilitated the recovery of personal resources. The results highlight the relevance of holistic sensory impressions to fostering recovery.
Promoting integrative negotiations – an experimental approach for using colored lighting in negotiation situations. Employees' negotiating skills substantially contribute to organizational success. In this context, recent research shows that the physical environment may influence interpersonal behavior for example in negations. The present study investigated the importance of colored light for cooperative behavior in integrative negotiations. The authors assumed that red light creates a pleasant, socially friendly atmosphere and thus promotes negotiation success. In an experimental study, the light color (red vs. blue and white) was varied. The results confirmed the assumption. The theoretical value, limitations and practical implications of the findings are discussed.