The impact of the behavioural environment on office productivity

Purpose The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the role the behavioural environment plays in office productivity. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews the literature from the occupier perspective. This approach enables a greater appreciation of the social context of offices. The review establishes the need to link work process with the office environment. It identifies the need to understand how occupiers make sense of space through personalisation. The balance between the positive interactions in the office and negative distractions are explored. Findings The review of the literature reveals that by adopting the occupier perspective potential tensions can be identified between individual, private and team‐based collaborative work areas. These tensions can have an impact on the office occupier's productivity. Originality/value This paper establishes that to ensure office environments are designed for optimum productivity; consideration needs to be given to the role of the behavioural environment. Office environments need to be designed to enhance collaboration, whilst at the same time ensure individual private work is not compromised.