Matakuliah : L0064 / Psikologi Industri &
Organisasi 1
Tahun
: 2007 / 2008
KONDISI DI TEMPAT KERJA
PERTEMUAN 16 & 17
Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Identify what factors are considered to be key elements
of psychical working conditions
2. Describe the focus of evolutionary psychology
3. Explain how light, glare, noise, and color affect
employees in the workplace
4. Describe how temporal working conditions affect worker
satisfaction, productivity, and absenteeism
5. Explain how social-psychological working conditions
relate to the design of the job and its effects on
employees
6. List the advantages and disadvantages of
telecommuting
Physical Working Conditions
• Poor working conditions affect
– Job satisfaction
– Performance
– Retention
• Physical features of the workplace must be considered in
light of complex psychological factors
Work Sites
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Physical plant
Parking
Location of the work site
Amenities, such as gyms and spas
Office and Workplace Design
• Physical features can create dissatisfaction or frustration
– Ventilation, heating, and air-conditioning (too hot in the sun, too
cool in the shade)
– Office size and design
– Slow elevators
– Inconvenient or poorly maintained restrooms
– Physical separation decreases communication
– Access for disabled workers
Environmental Psychology
• The study of the effect of workplace design on behavior
and attitudes
– Concerned with the relationship between people and their
physical environment
• Combines psychology and architecture
Landscaped Offices
• Huge open space with no floor to ceiling walls
– Uses planters, partitions, and bookcases
– Facilitates communication and workflow
– Standard design for companies with large numbers of computer
operators
– Complaints relate to lack of privacy, noise, and difficulty
concentrating
– Some employees who travel may have to book a room (“hoteling”)
Environmental Factors
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Illumination
Noise
Color
Music
Temperature and Humidity
Illumination
• Inadequate lighting is a source of distress
• Intensity varies with nature of task and age of worker
(older workers require more light)
– Aircraft manufacturing
– Bank teller stations
– Retail store interiors
2000 foot-candles
150
30
• Lighting should be uniformly distributed
– Indirect lighting is preferable to direct lighting
• Glare contributes to eyestrain and leads to errors in work
within 20 minutes
• Most workers prefer the presence of natural light
Noise
• Work exposure to decibel levels above 85 can
lead to hearing loss; above 120 db can cause
temporary deafness; above 130 db to permanent
deafness
• U.S. government requires worker exposure to no
more than 90 db for eight hour day; 100 db for
two hour period; 110 db for 30-minute period
• Noise interferes with communication
• High noise levels impair emotional well-being and
induce stress
Color
• Claims that there are relationships between
color and productivity, fatigue, or job satisfaction
are not supported by research
• Color can provide a more pleasant work
environment and aid in safety practices
• Light-colored walls give the feeling of open
space
• Blues and greens are cool colors; reds and
oranges are warm colors.
– Anecdotal evidence suggests these colors may affect
perceptions of temperature
Music
• Early studies reported that most workers liked
having music and believed it made them more
productive
• Music slightly increases productivity for dull,
monotonous work, but not for more demanding
work
• Muzak has been in business since 1934
– Their music is designed to meet changing needs
throughout the day
• Research supporting the benefits of workplace
music generally lack scientific rigor and control
Temperature and Humidity
• Productivity can deteriorate under uncomfortable
temperatures
• Primary complaint of office workers is that it’s too
cold.
• Highly motivated workers are better able to
function under temperature extremes than poorly
motivated workers
• Automated office equipment increases
temperature and lowers humidity to the point of
dryness
Work Schedules
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Working hours
Permanent part-time employment
The four-day workweek
Flexible work schedules
Rest breaks
Shift work
Working Hours
• The 5-day, 40-hour week became the norm with
the passage of FLSA in 1938
• Nominal working hours and actual working hours
rarely coincide
• Employees may spend no more than half the
workweek actually performing job related tasks
• The longer the workday or workweek, the lower
the productivity (also applies to overtime)
Permanent Part-Time Employment
• Part-time employment is the most widespread
form of alternative work schedule
– >25% of workforce holds part-time jobs
• Part-time employment has grown faster than fulltime employment
• Actual working hours of part-time workers
exceeds that of full-time
• Part-time is attractive to those with family
responsibilities and to the aging and disabled
The Four-Day Workweek
• Usually involves 4 x 10 hr. days or 4 x 9 hrs.
• Initiative usually comes from management’s
hopes for increased productivity, recruiting
incentive, and reduced absenteeism
• There is evidence of a positive impact on
satisfaction, but no impact on absenteeism or
rates of productivity
– However, there is a general belief that it aids
productivity
Flexible Work Schedules
• Flextime is a system of flexible working hours
combining core mandatory work periods with
elective work periods at the beginning and end
of the day
• Advantages include avoidance of rush-hour, less
absenteeism, more productivity, and satisfaction
with the work schedule
• See www.familiesandwork.org
Rest Breaks
• Management has recognized the importance of
rest breaks since the Hawthorne studies
• Employees will take breaks whether sanctioned
or not
• Results in higher morale and productivity and
lower fatigue and boredom
• Rest pauses also reduce repetitive motion
injuries
• May result in more positive attitudes toward
management
Shift Work
• Usually three shifts : (7 AM - 3 PM), (3 PM - 11 PM), and
(11 PM - 7 AM)
• Workers may be permanently assigned to a shift or they
may rotate
– About 25% of workers perform shift work
• Workers tend to be less productive on night shift than
day shift, and have more errors and accidents
• Disruption of normal sleep-wake cycle disrupts the body
and requires recovery time
• Fewer problems occur with the fixed shift than with the
rotating shift, even when fixed shift is at night
Psychological and Social Issues
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Job simplification
Boredom and monotony
Fatigue
Ethnic harassment
Gender and sexual harassment
Telecommuting
Job Simplification
• Job simplification is the reduction of manufacturing jobs
to the simplest components that can be mastered by
unskilled or semi-skilled workers
• Advantages include efficiency, cost savings, and less
training time required
• Disadvantages include less challenge, less satisfaction,
lower morale, and lower quality
• Repetitive, simplified work can lead to cognitive
deterioration usually associated with old age
– Workers prone to absentmindedness and disorientation
Boredom and Monotony
• Inevitable consequences of job fractionation and
simplification
• Results in tiredness, restlessness, discontent, and a
draining of interest and energy
• What is boring for one person may be exciting to
another
– Motivation is the key
• Job enlargement, changes in activities, attention to
physical environment, and a congenial informal
workgroup help
Fatigue
• Psychological fatigue is similar to boredom
• Physiological fatigue is caused by excessive use of
muscles
• Productivity negatively related to reported feelings of
fatigue
• When the pace is gradual, workers can take on
greater physical labor
• Rest periods should be prior to fatigue setting in
• Fatigue appears and disappears throughout the
workday
Ethnic Harassment
• Workplace is becoming increasingly
demographically diverse
• Ethnic harassment is an obvious source of
stress that negatively affects productivity,
satisfaction, and emotional and physical health
• Manifested as overt behaviors or slurs, jokes,
and derogatory comments
• Targets of verbal harassment reported lower
sense of psychological well being
Gender and Sexual Harassment
• Sexual harassment involves unwanted sexual attention
and coercion
• Gender harassment refers to behavior that reflects an
insulting, hostile and degrading attitude toward women
in general
– Does not necessarily involve sexual harassment
• Studies link harassment to low satisfaction, high stress
and increased use of mental health services
• Frequently goes unreported due to fear of reprisal
• Some disagreement on what constitutes harassment
Telecommuting
• Estimated that 23.6 million U.S. workers telecommute at
least part time
• Advantages include reduced overhead
• Women are more productive than men in virtual offices
• Telecommuting is attractive to employees with dependent
care problems or with disabilities
• Some people miss the social interaction or find home to be
distracting or dislike “never being away from the job”
• Nearly 20% of telecommuting programs fail
– One reason is that workers feel they are never free of the job
Key Terms
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Environmental psychology
Flextime
Job simplification
Nominal working hours