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The Science and Strategies Behind Engage & Bloom

The Science and Strategies Behind Engage & Bloom

Harnessing nature for workplace wellness and engagement

This resource explores the science and strategies behind Planteria Group’s Engage & Bloom workplace experience programme. It will show how the programme provides employees, organisations and facilities managers with several key benefits from both a commercial and wellbeing standpoint.

Key theories and frameworks are identified, demonstrating the scientific and strategic theory that underpins the Engage & Bloom programme.

wreath making

An Introduction to Engage & Bloom

Engage & Bloom is a science-backed employee experience
programme that is centred on the principles of biophilia and its scientifically
proven benefits in terms of productivity and wellbeing. Such benefits are
achieved through harnessing the power of nature to create inspirational spaces.

The Engage & Bloom programme teaches clients how to look
after their plants at home, as well as inspiring them in the world of planting
and nature through a range of engaging experiences, including workshops,
interactive QR codes, and educational pieces. 

Workplace Experience Program by Planteria Group

The Modern Workplace Challenge

The modern workplace presents numerous challenges to ensure employees are working at an optimal level that benefits both the individual and the wider organisation. Since 1950, research suggests that we have gradually become more disconnected from nature and the benefits it provides.

A 2023 study by the UK Government identified that people spend 80-90% of their time indoors. To make matters worse research suggests that on average an office worker spends 12 hours per day looking at a screen.

Offices commonly experience a disconnect from nature, due to urban environments and sterile interior settings, as well as the growing importance of technology that has often acted as a substitute for nature as a source of recreation and entertainment. 

Increasing Importance of Well-being and Engagement for Productivity

Engage & Bloom is based on the concept of biophilia, which refers to a human being’s innate desire to connect with nature. This is further reinforced by numerous scientific findings, notably an experiment conducted by the Chelsea Flower Show.

This experiment invited participants to take part in a study that measured their creativity, happiness, and productivity across a variety of different workplace designs. The results found that allowing staff to make design decisions in a workspace enhanced with office plants can:

·       Increase well-being by 47%

·       Increase creativity by 45%

·       Increase productivity by 38%

These findings highlight the significant benefits that simply being around plants can have on employees. However, the interactivity of the Engage & Bloom programme enables organisations and their employees to harness these benefits to an even more powerful extent.

The Innate Human Connection to Nature: Biophilia

Biophilia is described as ‘an innate love for the natural world, supposed to be felt universally by humankind.’ The biophilia hypothesis is based upon the belief that humans have an inbuilt tendency to seek connection with nature and other forms of life.

In fact, the word biophilia is a combination of two ancient Greek words: bio (meaning life) and philia (meaning love). The term was first used by German social psychologist Erich Fromm, who claimed that biophilia manifests as the ‘wish to further growth, whether in a person, plant, idea, or social group.’

The growing awareness and popularity of biophilic design is indicated in the below graph, which demonstrates how the word biophilia, along with related keywords, has seen a significant spike in how frequently it is mentioned in publications, particularly from 2008 onwards.

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Engage & Bloom is a solution that combines both science and strategy through engaging workplace activities. As well as improving productivity and wellbeing, Engage & Bloom also promotes teamwork and fosters connections with nature and one another.

The Engage & Bloom programme applies Fromm’s concept of growth in terms of people, plants, and social groups by giving individuals the opportunity to enjoy a shared experience that connects them with plants and nature both on an individual and group level.

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The Science of Wellness in the Workplace

Workplace wellbeing encompasses how employees feel at work and about work, with a focus on developing and displaying healthy behaviours.

More specifically, it can include some of the following elements:

  •         A positive working environment
  •         Job satisfaction and purposefulness
  •         Good leadership and management
  •         Pay and reward
  •         Personal development
  •     Physical and mental health

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Impact of Stress, Poor Air Quality and Sterile Environments on Staff

Factors such as stress, poor air quality, and sterile environments can all have a negative impact on workplace wellbeing. Poor workplace mental health has been estimated to cost UK businesses an incredible £45bn each year. Furthermore, Lumien data reveals how wellbeing impacts employees 27% of the time, and as a result, companies are losing 17% productivity.

Annually, this equates to £5,318.45 per employee, representing a significant organisational cost that could be mitigated through the implementation of wellbeing-focused initiatives.

Scientific Evidence Supporting Biophilia

Taking an evidence-based approach to workplace wellbeing allows employers to understand their employees wants and needs, along with areas of improvement.

According to the Mental Health Foundation, 45% of people reported that visiting green spaces helped them to cope. Likewise, Harvard research finds that spending 20 to 30 minutes in an outdoor setting where people feel they are interacting with nature can lower stress hormone levels.

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Cognitive and Productivity Benefits of Greenery in Offices

The concept of biophilia is supported by various studies and frameworks, including Kaplan’s Attention Restoration Theory which found that exposure to nature reduces mental fatigue, as well as helping improve focus and our ability to concentrate.

Likewise, Ulrech’s 1981 Stress Reduction Theory claims that natural environments promote recovery from stress, while urban environments tend to hinder it. 

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The Psychological Basis of Nature Engagement

According to the National Library of Medicine, individuals have less mental distress, less anxiety and depression, greater wellbeing and healthier cortisol profiles when living in areas with more greenspace.

This is reinforced by NHS research, which found that people who spend at least two hours a week in nature experience better health and higher psychological wellbeing than those who do not visit nature at all during an average week.

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Sensory Benefits of Plant Interaction

Sensory planting encourages an increasingly engaging and
meaningful experience with plants, stimulating senses, including smell, sound,
touch, and sight.

According to the RHS, selecting plants that are particularly
good for your senses can improve mood and general wellbeing. 

Examples of plants with sensory benefits include:

·       Fragrant flowers, such as lavender, jasmine, and rose

·       Herbs, including mint, basil, and rosemary

·       Plants with a particularly textural appearance include lamb’s ear, ferns, and ornamental grasses.

·       Vibrantly coloured plants that satisfy the visual sense

·       Edible plants such as strawberry plants

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Our Vertical Horizons towers can be used to grow herbs, salads and edible produce in the office.

Employee Engagement: Why it Matters

In their 2023 State of the Global Workplace Report, analytics and advisory firm Gallup found that nearly 6 in 10 employees are feeling disengaged at work. Traits of disengaged employees can include demotivation, missed deadlines, disinterest in team activities, and avoidance in taking initiative.

Such behaviours have also been described by the term ‘quiet quitting,’ whereby a disengaged employee only fulfils the bare minimum of their duties.   

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The Impact of Disengagement

Employee disengagement can result in several issues, both for an individual’s wellbeing and the organisation. Decreased productivity is a key risk of disengaged employees, along with high absenteeism and turnover rates and the subsequent recruitment and training costs.

The 2023 State of the Global Workplace report found that disengaged employees are estimated to cost the global economy $8.8 trillion dollars, which represents 9% of global GDP. As well as the financial implications, employee disengagement also results in an adverse impact on team morale, which may cause an overall reduction in workplace productivity and innovation due to an unfavourable working environment. 

The Spectrum of People Plant Interactions 6

The Role of Nature in Engagement

Biophilic design can be classified into six key principles illustrated below:

six key principles updated 2

The last two principles provide a clear insight into how biophilic design can foster a sense of purpose and belonging. Place-based relationships refer to the link between culture and ecology. This is based upon a human’s sense of connection with familiar surroundings and feelings of protection or stewardship towards such places, known as Place Attachment Theory.

A study published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology investigated the connection between green buildings and place attachment. It found that biophilic design and opportunities for connection to nature were amongst the most important aspects for supporting Place Attachment Theory and can enhance individual wellbeing, quality of life, as well as increase pro-environmental behaviours and community resilience.

When coupled with the attachment to nature and health and wellbeing benefits that biophilic design provides, it is clear to see the powerful impact that spaces with a strong biophilic element can have on an individual’s sense of belonging within that space. 

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How Interactive Experiences with Plants Create Meaningful Connections

Direct contact with vegetation represents one of the most successful ways of promoting human connection in design. Dr. Stephen Kellert claims that human evolution and survival require the management of natural environments, particularly with regards to sensory elements. Moreover, DelSesto highlights the variety of often overlooked ways that we interact with plants in daily life.

From clothing to writing materials, plants are used to produce essential daily items. What’s more, the exchange of plants as a mark of celebration or condolence highlights their powerful role in landmark events in our lives.

DelSesto’s below spectrum categorises people-plant interactions into key groupings: physical exertion, tactile immersion, and peaceful abiding. Different aspects can align particularly strongly with some of the identified benefits of biophilia. For example, interactions classified under the ‘peaceful abiding’ grouping are likely to be closely aligned to the benefits of stress reduction, while those classed as ‘tactile immersion’ may be particularly effective at boosting engagement and concentration.

The spectrum of people plant interactions

Strategies Behind Engage & Bloom: Tailored Solutions for Every Workplace

Engage & Bloom comprises three modular packages, allowing tailored solutions for every workplace. In addition to an informative biophilic webinar, employees can dial in live and speak to our ‘Plant Doctor’ who will advise on care and maintenance of specific plants. 

Furthermore, there is the opportunity to identify and learn about plant species simply by scanning a plant’s QR code, which brings up the relevant page of the Plantopedia. Silver and gold packages also include interactive and engaging biophilic-based workshops, which can encompass activities such as wreath making, floristry, and orchid arrangement.

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Flexible Solutions to Suit Workplace Needs

Engage & Bloom is focused on creating tailored solutions for every workplace. The flexibility of several key offerings within the programme allows employers to implement activities in accordance with their workplace’s needs and schedules.

Plant giveaways, biophilic webinars, and workshops can be scheduled at a convenient time and location for the business, whether it is on-site or at a separate location as part of an out-of-office event.

Engagement Through Experience

According to Michigan State University, there are many activities workplaces can implement to improve group cohesion and build trust.

Such activities often give employees the chance to interact with colleagues in a different way and reveal different aspects of their personalities that may not come out during normal work interactions.

Other advantages of team building include:

  •     Boosting employee engagement
  •     Encouraging communication
  •     Mitigating  conflict
  •     Increasing  collaboration

Engage & Bloom workshops provide an opportunity for employees to experience these benefits, whether working directly together or enjoying a shared experience alongside each other to produce wreaths, orchid displays, and floristry bouquets.

As noted by McKinsey & Company, being amongst nature helps with attention span, creativity, well-being, and happiness and should act as a foundational resource for both individual and team development.

How Interactive Learning Builds Deeper Connection

Referring to DelSesto’s spectrum of people-plant interactions, the different activities within the Engage & Bloom programme can be classified within this framework. Floristry bouquets, moss art, orchid and wreath making workshops are categorised under the ‘tactile immersion’ category due to employees’ physical interaction with plant materials.

Other aspects of the Engage & Bloom programme, such as plant giveaways, dial-in plant clinics, and identifying plant species using a QR code and Plantopedia are categorised under the ‘peaceful abiding’ category, due to their focus on sensory engagement with plant environments and representations of plant environments. Such interactive and informative activities can promote deeper connections within the workplace.

The social element of a shared workplace activity can help employees to feel connected to one another and the activity. According to Times Higher Education, feeling connected to what is being learnt and the people one is learning alongside is what underpins engagement. They go on to state that feeling socially connected enhances an individual’s sense of belonging, which is essential to maintain motivation and feelings of safety and comfort.

Employee Satisfaction Surveys

Employee satisfaction following increased interaction with biophilia can be measured in several ways. Heightened creativity may be evident in subsequent projects and brainstorming sessions, while reported increases in productivity can also be observed.

Organisations may find that outlined objectives are being reached increasingly quickly and projects are completed ahead of schedule. In terms of wellbeing, employers may observe a positive change in the overall mood and atmosphere within the workplace

Client Success Stories

Recently, we brought the Engage & Bloom program to a leading social media platform’s London office. Employees fully embraced the experience, from learning about plant care to taking home their own plant, the event left lasting impressions and fostered stronger connections with nature in the workplace. 

The client shared the following feedback after the event: “I’m so happy that you shared some beautiful pictures with me today. The plants look amazing, and I was extremely happy to see the engagement with our members; they looked happy. Well done to the Planteria team!”.

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Plant giveaway 2
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Case Studies

Engage & Bloom activities have been successfully implemented in a diverse range of workplaces and industries.

Wreath making makes a particularly popular seasonal workshop that can be adapted to the season, whether it is over the festive period, autumn, or spring. As such, materials can also be adapted to suit the season, theme, and even the organisation’s brand colours, creating a truly personalised experience for each individual workplace.

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Wreath 3
Wreath 2

Quantifiable Benefits for Staff Engagement and Wellness

Awareness and application of biophilia within the workplace, through biophilic design elements in the office and Engage & Bloom engagement activities can be quantifiably measured using numerous metrics.

The outlined body of scientific research strongly suggests that organisations would see a reduction in absenteeism and the number of cases of reported stress and wellbeing-related issues when biophilic design and activities are regularly implemented within the workplace.

Implementing Engage & Bloom

According to the KPMG 2024 CEO Outlook Report, the majority of UK CEOs expect companies to shift towards a full return to office work within the next three years. As such, it is important for facilities professionals to look at ways to create calming and inviting workplaces.

The implementation of biophilic design principles is a key way to achieve this and demonstrate the facilities manager’s commitment to wellbeing and engagement. Introducing new and innovative biophilic initiatives can help facilities managers to further strengthen their client relationships and demonstrate proactive awareness of scientific and strategically backed initiatives that benefit their clients.

Preparing for an Engage & Bloom Rollout

The Engage & Bloom team will contact you to book in your events on a date that is convenient to your team.  They will talk through the options with you and help you choose the best event type to suit your team, goals and/or the time of year. 

For example, the wreath building workshop is most popular in Quarter 4 – as staff get to take home their own handcrafted wreath ready to decorate their home for Christmas.The Engage & Bloom team will identify what sort of space they need to hold the workshop or activities. 

We recommend sending out company-wide communications for the larger events or specific invitations to the workshops.  Allow staff enough time to ensure they are in the office on the specific days.  The anticipation of a fun and engaging event can be a engagement piece in itself – reminding them that the company is committed to their wellbeing and have them looking forward to the event.

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Partnership with Planteria Group

Planteria Group is committed to delivering tailored solutions for each individual workplace. With three packages available, employers can choose the one that is best aligned to their budgetary and organisational needs, with each package consisting of several Engage & Bloom initiatives. Silver and Gold packages also let organisations choose between 2-4 yearly workshops, with the opportunity to pick from several different workshop options and tailor them to suit their organisation’s needs.

Conclusion

Engage & Bloom is rooted in a scientific foundation. It’s based upon the key principles identified in Kaplan’s Attention Restoration Theory regarding nature exposure reducing mental fatigue.  It is also based on Ulrech’s 1981 Stress Reduction Theory and its belief that natural environments promote recovery from stress.

Engage & Bloom harnesses the power of nature in the form of interactive initiatives that improve cohesion, build trust, and encourage enhanced team relationships.

As highlighted, the implementation of an Engage & Bloom workplace experience programme provides several key benefits, both in terms of individual employee wellbeing, productivity, and creativity. Additionally, there are a multitude of wider organisational benefits, including reduced absenteeism, labour turnover, and heightened team morale.

Discover tailored solutions that provide organisational, individual, and team benefits. Let us help you transform your workplace today.

About Planteria Group

Planteria is the UK’s leading office plant company, operating as an independent, family-run business of experts for more than 40 years and maintaining over 90,000 plant displays nationwide. We are committed to creating best-in-class biophilic design and have worked on some of the UK’s most prestigious projects. 

You’ll find our work in offices, showrooms, and public buildings across the UK. Our Services: Design, installation and maintenance of planting for workplaces.  Interior and exterior biophilic design, living walls and moss walls. We also offer corporate floristry and seasonal decorations, including orchids, Christmas trees and more workplace experience services via our Engage & Bloom Programme.

Contact Information

ENGAGE & BLOOM TEAM

T: 0345 505 3333

E: engageandbloom@planteriagroup.com

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Discover ways to enhance your office environment with our expert insights on biophilic design, wellbeing, sustainability and the world of plants.

Biophilia White Paper

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We spend a great chunk of our lives at work. For some, this isn’t so bad. Walk into a high-ceilinged workspace, filled with natural light, artwork and plant life and it’s more than likely your creative ability will be invigorated. Yet these offices are few and far between, with the reality likely being a drab, open plan office that sucks the creativity and enthusiasm from you the longer you spend there. The way we design our offices is important, from the big aspects to the small, from the obvious to the obscure.

This informative report is the result of research conducted by Where We Work, written by Jessica Andrews with input from Planteria Group.

Where We Work offers a focused range of workplace consultancy services, with the necessary tools and expertise to help understand your business, your people, and your place of work. Where We Work partners with clients to develop a robust workplace strategy by looking, listening and discussing how each company interacts with their space.

Biophilia is word that you’re going to be hearing a lot more of and it’s going to have an ever increasing influence on interior design and architecture. Yet many of us are probably unfamiliar with this term. This paper seeks to explain the concept of biophilia and its application in an office environment as well as investigating the potential benefits of plants in the workspace and why they are so often a forgotten element.

What is Biophilia?

Let’s start with the basics. What is biophilia? Simply put, it literally means ‘a love of life or living things’; stemming from the Greek word ‘philia’, meaning love. As humans, we have an intuitive and deeply ingrained connection with nature and a biological need for immersion in the natural world. The relationship between people and plants has always been profoundly important. Biophilic design is a response to this human need, which works to re-establish contact with nature in the built environment. Plants affect every aspect of our lives; without them life as we know it would not be possible. Plants not only make the air breathable, but kick off the food chain. We feel good in nature, if you were asked to picture a place where you feel calm and relaxed, chances are you would pick a scene involving nature. This is backed up by statistics which show that 90% of us imagine a natural setting when presented with this task (Mocha, 2013). Our mental and physical well-being depends on engagement with the natural environment, being in a drab room without windows and piped air makes us feel lethargic, even depressed.

A connection with the natural world is clearly important. Yet we are living in ever more urban environments, deforesting trees to build our cities around the globe. The increasing academic and organisational interest in biophilia and biophilic design is driven by the positive outcomes that it can help to create, for both individuals and businesses.

This increasing interest in biophilia comes at a time when, as a species, we are more disconnected from nature than we have ever been. Living in an inner city, one can go days without seeing a patch of grass. Living and working in central London, you have to actively search out areas of green, else it could be weeks before you escape the underground, sky scrapers and office spaces overlooking (you guessed it), yet more concrete.

At a time when businesses have more knowledge than ever before on the effect of work environments on their people and their bottom line, it’s surprising that the biophilic agenda is still in its infancy.

In its rawest form, biophilic design is the theory, science and practice of bringing buildings to life and aims to continue a person’s connections with nature in man-made environments, such as offices, where we live and work every day. By mimicking natural environments in man-made ones, we can decrease our isolation from nature and create workspaces that are imbued with positive emotional experiences. (Human Spaces, 2015)

 

Bringing nature to work

Biophilic design brings an office to life. The benefits of biophilia stretch far beyond the practical benefits of recycling clean air.

Recent research into biophilia has found the positive impacts contact with nature can have. Studies have shown that this impact includes increasing academic performance amongst school children, increasing consumer’s willingness to spend and even reducing stress and anxiety before medical procedures. People exposed to natural surroundings are more energised, feel less stressed and have improved attention spans (Human Spaces, 2015) – all good news for employers. Recently, white papers such as ‘The Economics of Biophilia’ have shown us that natural materials in a workspace are not extravagances, but a way to make cost-savings and drive profits. (Terrapin, 2015)

Analysis has shown that individuals with a view from their desk of natural elements such as water, trees or countryside have greater levels of well-being that people who have a view of buildings, roads or construction sites (Human Spaces, 2015). However, one study found that just 58% of workers have natural light reaching their desk and 7% have no windows at all – a clear indication that the benefits of bringing nature to work are not appreciated or applied to the workplace nearly enough.

However, it is important to note that in some cases it is not possible to provide employees with views of nature. If offices are located in the centre of a large city, it would not be a practical aim to strive towards. In these cases, it is possible to bring nature inside. Introducing plants, trees, water fountains and images of nature are all ways to add a biophilic element to an office space, increase the connection employees have to nature and reap the benefits this sows.

This may sound like a daunting task, but bringing plants into the office space has never been easier. Help is also at hand in the form of companies with a wealth of knowledge into biophilia and its application in an office environment.

 

Planteria case study

So we know that plants make us feel good. But how does this feeling directly apply to the workplace? How does having plants in the office impact the bottom line and how can business maximise the potential benefits?

Planteria Group are a company specialising in planting services, with clients in many different sectors including corporate offices.  Established in 1977, Planteria have grown over the past 40 years and now provide a national service to over 900 sites across the UK.  They have seen an increasing appreciation of the importance of planting in the work place.

“We have seen a change in the attitude towards planting in the work place.  What was once considered a ‘nice to have’ is now more likely to be viewed as a ‘must have’ and this is very positive.  However, we still have a way to go in raising awareness of the importance of biophilia and the beneficial effects it has on people, improving wellbeing in the work place, especially with businesses outside of our major cities.  Yes, planting helps to improve productivity and creativity but most importantly it improves physical and mental health and creates a happier environment.  So much time is spent at work, creating the best possible environment for your people is paramount.

Plants and flowers do so much more than add the finishing touches to an interior they can create a completely different ‘feel’ to a location.  What was clinical and bland can be transformed into a vibrant, or more relaxing space.  Planting can also be used for practical benefits.  For example, a living wall or moss wall will improve acoustics by absorbing sound.  Cabinet top planting can cut clutter by removing the areas where people leave cups and folders or unclaimed printing.  Or add live planting dividers to get the benefits and attractiveness of plants whilst creating instant, low cost break-out areas and informal meeting spaces in open plan office.

As one of the first tenants to make their home in London’s Iconic Walkie Talkie building.  Insurance specialists, Lancashire Group were looking to buck the trend.  Their focus in establishing a single office for their combined Lloyd’s and London market operations was to move away from the more usual monochrome minimalism and instead opt for a warm, homely, fun atmosphere for the workplace, with soft furnishings and materials to create a look that managed to be both high-end and cosy.

Plants were an essential element to complete the interior and we chose them with care to reflect and enhance this concept.  We used bark containers in the client waiting area along with neutral white containers in the office and meetings rooms.  Succulent plants add a fun, contemporary touch to the breakout areas, and funky square cabinet top displays completed the fit-out.”

 

Biophilia and productivity

An all too common belief is that money spent on plants is money wasted (Dravigne et al., 2008). This is a sentiment that has been widely shared throughout history, where literature argues that clean, obstruction free work spaces are the most economical route to business health and productivity (e.g. Haberkorn, 2005).

The ‘lean’, rather than ‘green’, philosophy has a long history indeed. The idea that productive workplaces are those free from interference was formally put across by Josiah Wedgewood in the 18th century and it was this work which inspired Frederick Taylor (1911) to apply the principles of scientific management to office space.

In the wake of these findings, it is common for managers to insist that workspaces should be clear of plants, pictures and anything that is not directly required for the job at hand, in order to streamline operations and maximise productivity (Haslam & Knight, 2006). Yet doesn’t basing these assumptions on work that is over a century old seem a little foolish? Indeed, the workspace, the products and services we provide and the technology we use would be unimaginable to Taylor when he came up with his theories.

The evidence suggests that to neglect enrichment in the workplace is foolish indeed. Research by Knight and Haslam in 2010 found that people who work in an environment enriched with plants were more productive than their peers who worked in a lean space. Additionally, levels of wellbeing – measured by sick days, feelings of comfort and levels of job satisfaction – were significantly higher in the spaces containing plants. This study found the lean space to be inferior in all dimensions.

Why do plants have this impact?

Generally, studies into the impact of plants have indicated that we experience a beneficial psychological and physiological reaction from being exposed to nature. Physiological stress, or arousal (as measured by heart rate, blood pressure, and/or skin conductance) is often lower after exposure to plants and nature as compared with urban settings and exposure to nature has been shown to have the capacity to improve attention (Berman et al., 2008).

As it stands, there are three main classes of explanation for these responses. The first states that plants, as living organisms, have a beneficial influence on the climate of the working environment – in particular because they improve air quality. Indeed, when planted in sufficient quantity, indoor plants have been shown to remove many types of air-borne pollutants from both indoor and outdoor sources (Nieuwenhuis et al., 2014). In offices with plants, staff well-being increases and there is a reduction in sick leave (Bergs, 2002). Plants ability to absorb carbon dioxide also has beneficial implications for the office; studies have found that student performance declines with increasing CO2 levels (Shaughnessy et al., 2006), as does workplace productivity (Seppänen et al., 2006).

The second explanation of plants’ beneficial effects revolves around our evolution. Evolutionarily speaking, a green environment reflects the natural world and so supports human physiology (Appleton, 1975).

The third and final class of explanation moves away from physiological responses and instead considers the managerial consequences of enrichment. The basic premise of this theory is that enrichment of the workplace (whether through plants or other means) signals that attempts are being made by management to improve staff well-being (Vischer, 2005). This sense of managerial care communicates their focus on employee well-being, which may lead to increased attention at work, greater productivity and engagement and lower absence and attrition. Evidence supporting this idea comes in the form of a study by Dravigne et al. (2008), which showed that people working in offices with plants reported feeling happier in their job and their performance.

Additionally, this study emphasises the aforementioned point that transforming a lean office to a green one contributes not just to employee welfare, but also to profits and organisational output. Lean, it appears, is meaner than green, not only because it is less pleasant, but also because it is less productive (Nieuwenhuis et al., 2014).

When we’re happy and feeling good, we have a more positive outlook and are generally able to do more. There is clear evidence which directly links biophilia with organisational output. In a study of call centre workers, the numbers of calls handles per hour was 6-7% greater for those with a view of the outdoor environment, in comparison to those with no view. (Human Spaces, 2015)

It is clear that enriched spaces lead to improved job performance and greater productivity.  Yet of course, this idea that empowering organisational strategies have positive consequences is not new to either social or organisational psychology. Both of these disciplines benefit from massive literature supporting the notion that productivity and well-being can be enhanced by including employees in the decision making process and giving them a voice in their workplace (e.g. Eggins et al., 2002).

So, with this abundance of evidence pointing to the fact that enriched spaces make us happier and more productive, why are aspects such as plants not a feature in all modern office spaces?

The problem with the modern office

The way we structure our offices has changed considerably over the past few decades. More often than not, the world of the modern office is dominated by open plan. It’s not hard to identify why this change has occurred, the cost of space has sky rocketed and open plan provides a cost effective way to maximise the number of staff on the office floor. Yet the evidence suggests that the costs of open plan offices might offset the benefits of savings in terms of space if it is not implemented properly, as part of a multi-layered office design. They are often cramped, noisy and starved of light and some staff find themselves in the position of having no opportunity to express their identity at work – at all.

Studies across the pond have found that 70% of American workers personalise their workspaces. Yet it is managers and employees with enclosed offices who decorate more than their co-workers in open plan spaces (Wells & Thelen, 2002). In open plan spaces, personalisation of low-status working space is often infrequent and discouraged (Laing et al., 1998). The dominance of open plan offices means that the majority of staff now suffer from a lack of identity at work and a 2010 study by Knight & Haslam found that clean-desk policies resulted in high levels of personal identity threat, increased stress and a reduced willingness to contribute to company policy. This is thought to be due to the limited opportunities these staff had to express their personal identities, for example by decorating their workspace. Open plan offices themselves are not the problem, as they do have their benefits. However, it is important that offices be designed with the drawbacks open plan can have in mind and counteract these issues – for example by including quiet spaces, artwork and greenery.

A final thought…

The evidence that enriched spaces which involve employees in their design boosts morale and productivity is important. Perhaps most notably because it challenges the managerial models which argue the best way to manage is by removing autonomy and control from staff and having decisions come only from managers – as was noted by Bibby in 1996 (work which is still very relevant to academic research today). The fact that giving workers ‘some say’ in the design of their workspace is seen as ‘experimental’ indicates just how ingrained the ethos of managerial control has become.

At its core, the simplistic answer as to why plants are so often neglected lies with the individuals responsible for office design. The management of the modern office is typically influenced by architects, interior designers and facility managers, rather than by psychologists and office workers (Cohen, 2007). Managers need to move away from an autocratic style of management, towards a more collective approach to office design which involves staff at all stages of the process. Giving employees a say in the type of plants to introduce into a space is a great way to begin this movement.

The idea of incorporating nature into the built environment through biophilic design is less often seen as a luxury in the modern workplace, but rather as a sound economic investment into employees’ health, well-being and performance. Plants in the workspace can have a remarkable impact on employee well-being, both from the biological impact of their presence and the psychological benefit being involved in decision making can have. With this in mind, it seems that taking baby steps to introduce the natural world into the man-made one we have created around us, seems to be of the utmost importance to the well-being of office staff. It seems starkly apparent that green really is better than lean in all walks of life – and the modern office should be no exception.

Author: Jessica Andrews

References

Berman, M.G., Jonides, J., & Kaplan, S. (2008). The cognitive benefits of interacting with nature. Psychological Science, 19, 1207–1212.

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