Effects of Manipulated Daytime Experience on Mood, Stress and Productivity in a Work Environment
A manipulated environment to mimic daytime experience
In colder months when the daytime becomes shorter and sunlight decreases, the weather in some regions can have an adverse impact on mood and emotional state. Such responses vary by individual, but in the most severe cases they can produce Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which is associated with difficulties concentrating and engaging in productive activity. Prior research suggested that manipulating the lighting of indoor environments can help to improve such human performance in a variety of domains, including cognition, creativity, and learning outcomes (Lan et al., 2021; Ru et al., 2019). Additional research has concluded that experience of nature, even with minimal exposure, can aid in mental restoration and improved productivity (Gladwell et al., 2012). This study examined the effects of a modified indoor workspace with enhanced lighting features for college students who were suffering from mild SAD symptoms such as lack of concentration and low mood. Researchers hypothesized that such interventions that combined lighting and views would help reduce stress, increase mood, change perception of time, and promote work performance in this population.
RESEARCH TEAM
Zhiwen (Calvin) Qiu, Debbie Jung, Sydney Polando, Chloe Chen, Prof. Saleh Kalantari
LINK
PRESENTATION
PROJECT TYPE
EDRA 54 Conference, Mexico City
Academia, Cornell University
DURATION
2022.08 - 2023. 2
MY ROLE / TOOLS
Research Lead, experiment design, develop prototype, write report
Problem Statement & Hypothesis
Based on existing findings on positive effects of lighting and natural engagement, the study aims to manipulate the daylight experience to improve mood, productivity and reduce stress. We specifically target those who experience winter blues/SAD in winter times by manipulating lighting and views inside of a room.
H1. The daytime manipulation experience has positively influence on performance, mood, and reduced stress.
H2. The daytime manipulation experience are associated with time perception such that people felt time passed slower than usual.
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Fig 1. Research conceptual model
Prototype Design
We developed a prototype to mimic the outdoors in the winter in a windowless experiment room. The space has a small desk with a laptop to do tasks. To set up the view, The chosen projection is a 2-minute video captured in Ithaca during winter, projecting an image with cold lighting onto a wooden window frame. This provides a sense of connection to the outside world, despite the lack of a traditional window. As for the lighting condition, there was a ceiling-mounted troffer provides 500 lux at 4,000 K, while a floor luminaire further enhances the lighting with 1,000 lux at 7,500 K to mimic the color intensity and CCT of natural light, as well as taken from literature for better mood and productivity.
Fig 2. Prototype inside an experiment room with video projection and lighting conditions
Experiment Procedure
For the pilot study, nine college students (7 Female, M Age = 21.5) participated in the study. After completing the pretest survey, they were asked to adapt to existing lighting condition, followed by three tasks PVT/ST/SDT and filled out post survey about perceived stress, mood and time perception.
Fig 3. Schematic representation of the full session. (PVT: Psychomotor Vigilance Task; ST: Stroop Test; DST: Digit Span Test)
Qualitative Results
The participants responded positively to the simulated daytime elements in the work environment. They reported that their mood and comfort levels were improved, illustrating the psychological benefits of this setup. Notably, stress levels were reported to decrease, and focus improved. This suggests that the prototype setup creates a more relaxed environment conducive to concentration. Regarding task performance, participants completed tasks accurately and with short reaction times, indicating a positive impact on productivity. Interestingly, participants felt that less time had passed than actually had, which suggests that the prototype might reduce feelings of fatigue and make work hours seem to pass more quickly. Also, the ratings for spatial attention, sense of immersiveness, and perceived performance benefits were all positive. This indicates that the simulated daytime view is effective in creating an engaging and beneficial work environment.
Limitation & Future Work
As this is a work-in-progress study, there are some limitations and areas for improvement in the future: The diversity of participants wasn't fully considered, such as varying degrees of susceptibility to the winter blues. The sample size was also relatively small. Future research should aim for a more diverse and larger participant group for increased validity.
The artificial window's projected view did not accurately reflect actual outdoor sunny conditions, as the lighting was slightly off. Future iterations should pretest varying lighting conditions to accurately represent daylight for a more realistic daytime experience.
The study consisted only of one experiment group using the prototype. Future research should incorporate a control group without the prototype for comparison. Additionally, extending the test duration to a longer period, such as two weeks or a month, could provide a more comprehensive understanding of the prototype's effects.
By addressing these considerations, future research can further optimize the design of the prototype and provide more robust evidence of its effectiveness.