5 key office design factors which affects the mental & psychological health of the employees

Did you know that populaces spend close to 90% of their time indoors? In addition, people who are employed outside the home spend more than a third of their waking hours at their workplace. Is it any conjecture then that one’s physical or mental health can be greatly affected by the physical, social and mental aspects of the workplace? If one’s working environment is negative, the result can mean lower work performance, injuries, mental disparity and absences. However, just the opposite can occur with a well-designed workplace. Most often the physical design of the workplace focuses on the physical effects on the workers. Instead, the purpose of this article will address how workplace design affects the well-being of the workers.



Did you know that populaces spend close to 90% of their time indoors? In addition, people who are employed outside the home spend more than a third of their waking hours at their workplace. Is it any conjecture then that one’s physical or mental health can be greatly affected by the physical, social and mental aspects of the workplace? If one’s working environment is negative, the result can mean lower work performance, injuries, mental disparity and absences.
However, just the opposite can occur with a well-designed workplace. Most often the physical design of the workplace focuses on the physical effects on the workers. Instead, the purpose of this article will address how workplace design affects the well-being of the workers.


We bring to you some of the best office designing tips to choose from that makes the working environment aesthetically pleasing!


View to Nature and Daylight

People generally desire to be surrounded by nature, which provides endless sources of dissimilarity and sensory change. It is also beneficial for people to spend time outside, even for limited time, during the day.




The presence of daylight and windows presents opportunities for active & passive contact with nature, sensory change & variability; positively impact well-being. Given complete freedom, people want to be on a height looking down. Therefore while designing the layout ensure you focus on creating windows that allow greater flow of daylight as well. For example, incorporating glass walls to bifurcate cubicles rather than using walls to divide will help in more natural light flow.


Deploy varied shades of colors

How people distinguish color varies based on their customs and life experiences. However, there are some simplifications about how colors are likely to be perceived, either explicitly or subliminally, in the workplace.

For instance, brighter colors are linked with higher focus and task precision, blue is calming and cooling, promoting mental control and creative thinking, red enhances feelings of strength and energy; it is associated with vitality and ambition, etc.

Get rid of Horde

When people feel crowded they often feel stressed, which influences their satisfaction of the workplace. The perception of space and whether a person feels surrounded by a large set of people varies greatly by cultural background, individual preferences and gender. Basis the thumb rules of Sally Augustin, an environmental psychologist and expert in how people perceive space - People who work in high-rise buildings feel more crowded than people who do not. This effect is reduced for people who reside on the upper stories in tall buildings, likely because they have better views and access to daylight.

The perception of crowding can be reduced through the use of furniture, plants, decorative elements or pillars. These objects prevent people from feeling swarming or distracted.


Flexible layouts

Nowadays workplaces are being designed in such a way that it best suits the company’s requirement. By picking the right office furniture and flexible design, it will be very convenient for the employees to work proficiently. A well-designed office place is the one where the changes can be made effortlessly according to the task at hand. Flexible layouts provide a cost effective and ensure comforts to the young companies who need to stay agile and dynamic as they grow and expand themselves.

Embrace the outside world

Isn’t it quite boring to work in the same place for 8 or 9 hours per day? This routine life of employees might perturb the productivity on whole. By adding natural elements to the office spaces such as by incorporating greenery will help to increase air purity and make workers happier, leading to increased wellbeing and productivity.

Trendy offices offer plenty of space for employees. Part of building a healthier work environment involves rethinking the physical work surroundings. It is important that employees do not feel trapped at their desks. Instead, companies must start to promote onsite gyms, walking meetings, as well as standing desks.




There have been relatively few studies done that have concentrated on the correlation between the physical workplace design and mental health. One can use the results from studies on mentally healthy people to somewhat predict the effects of the physical workplace design on those with psychological concerns.

So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and plan your office layout keeping in mind the health aspects of your employees and help them perform to the best of their capability!!

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