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Clearly, many workers would be more comfortable if they had some control over their immediate environment—if they could adjust the heat or turn on a task light, for example. But “very few buildings or workstations enable occupants to control lighting, temperature, ventilation rates, or noise conditions.

functional comfort, wherein the work environment becomes a tool that enables and supports individual work and collaborative teams. “There are fewer standards and practices to ensure functional comfort than there are for physical comfort,”

In Herman Miller’s survey of 500 workers, four out of five attributes that were consistent predictors of a “high comfort” workstation related directly to functional comfort: The capability to support space for two or more people to meet The capability to control interaction with those around me The option to place the computer in the most suitable location Having a place to store my personal items

While physical and functional comfort are linked to productivity, psychological comfort relates to uniquely human needs, such as the ability to control elements of one’s job, to personalize one’s space, to set boundaries, and to connect with nature or beauty. While psychological comfort is difficult to quantify, it addresses some intensely human drives.

Control, for example, is related to higher levels of job satisfaction and psychological comfort.

In the office, territoriality operates in at least two ways: in the attempt to control visual, auditory, or physical interruptions and in the nearly universal urge to personalize one’s space.

Interruption is perceived as an invasion of personal space, and the inability to control it produces frustration and territorial behavior, which can range from complaining about confidentiality to erecting blockades.

Territoriality also concerns the human need for self-expression.

“People who are informed about workspace-related decisions, and who participate in decisions about their own space, are more likely to feel territorial about their workspace and to have feelings of belonging and ownership.” *22

the effect of beauty—the aesthetic element of a work environment—may be the most unquantifiable contributor to psychological comfort in the workplace.

The beneficial effect of natural light on health is so compelling that European Union directives on workplace health and safety state that “workplaces must as far as possible receive sufficient natural light...”

A growing body of research shows that building environments that connect people to nature are more supportive of human emotional well- being and cognitive performance than environments lacking these features,” writes Heerwagen.