Many customers in computerized offices will appreciate that change. If our findings are correct, workers' anxiety and stress may be reduced by this change, while also maintaining productivity and accuracy. The two lighting strategies preferred by participants used a combination of direct and indirect lighting. Compact fluorescent fixtures were used to wall-wash the offices. One of the two preferred offices had a slightly higher score on the reading comprehension test.
Researchers theorize the improved performance was due to reduced glare on the computer screen.
Except for the reading test, the four lighting systems studied had little influence on performance tests, which also included proofreading, spreadsheet entries and test typing on MacIntosh computers. In one of the preferred offices, test results on glossy paper were considerably worse than in the other offices, but performance on plain paper was similar. The relatively poor performance on glossy paper was surprising because this office was designed to be very low glare. The most energy-efficient office, using just 151 watts, was least liked by participants, who indicated it was gloomy. Nevertheless, their test performances showed this configuration was acceptable for short-term productivity.