The Phase Two research examines the relationship between productivity in the office workplace and various features of lighting...

...including personal control, overhead glare, and non-task surface brightness. These features of lighting are being studied in detail to better understand their effects on workers. The research projects are being conducted by research organizations that were selected through solicitations issued by the Light Right Consortium. Each research project is part of an overall research agenda that addresses the key aspects of lighting and effects on productivity that were identified by the Research Master Task Plan Workshop of Phase One. The projects relate to each other, allowing the results to be used in predictive format in later phases of the Light Right project. The output measures in the studies have been informed by the Market Research from Phase One to ensure that results will be important to decision-makers.

How do we define "productivity" and how can it be measured in an office environment?

Productivity is defined in economic terms as an output produced per unit of labor (or other factor of production). When it comes to productivity in a non-industrial setting such as offices, the definition of productivity extends beyond worker output per labor hour to include numerous aspects of individual and organizational success, such as the quality of the output, occupant satisfaction, employee attraction and/or retention, health and comfort of workers, company image, and financial success.

An emerging approach to studying knowledge worker productivity focuses on mental building blocks and psychological processes – those skills and abilities that are characteristic of information processing work in general. Examples of these mental building blocks include attention, vigilance, memory, creativity, mental occupation and comprehension. Examples of relevant psychological processes include motivation, persistence and effort. Researchers from several different scientific fields have developed measurement tools for assessing these various skills and processes.