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Specification and empirical exploration of a usability concept in the workplace

Lukas Windlinger (Institute of Facility Management, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Wadenswil, Switzerland)
Suvi Nenonen (Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland)
Kaisa Airo (Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland)

Facilities

ISSN: 0263-2772

Article publication date: 1 August 2016

546

Abstract

Purpose

Building on fundamental work on usability of workplaces, this paper aims to extend the perspective of usability as an approach in delivering workplace solutions. To explore the content and implications of usability, the concept is differentiated into two sub-concepts: usefulness and user-friendliness.

Design/methodology/approach

The theoretical rationale for the proposed conceptual specification is presented and explored using data from two independent research projects: a qualitative interview study in an office relocation project in Finland and a quantitative survey study of 1,420 office users of 43 buildings in Switzerland. The goal of the empirical research is to capture the elements of user experience connected to usability using the distinction between usefulness and user-friendliness.

Findings

The results from both studies show that perceived support of work activities by workspaces in relation to work tasks is the main element of usefulness. User-friendliness incorporates comfort and control as the two most important aspects. Correlations between usefulness and user-friendliness and outcomes of usable workspace design are low for self-assessed performance, moderate for job satisfaction and high for work area satisfaction.

Practical implications

Providing useful workplaces supports users’ job performance while designing for user-friendliness is correlated with user satisfaction.

Originality/value

The differentiation of usefulness and user-friendliness of office environments provides a new way to describe user experience. The integration of qualitative and quantitative research strategies strengthens the research evidence.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Lukas Windlinger’s contribution to this paper was partially sponsored by the Commission for Technology and Innovation (Swiss Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology) through funding of the projects “Cost and health effectiveness of future-oriented office design” (7828.2 ESPP-ES) and “human building – optimal performance” (8838.2 PFES-ES). The author would like to acknowledge that he is solely responsible for his contribution, and that it does not represent the opinion of the Commission or any of the project partners, and that the Commission or project partners are not responsible for any use that might be made of data appearing therein. The Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation has made it possible to conduct the Finnish research. The authors gratefully acknowledge the comments received by two anonymous reviewers.

A preliminary version of this paper has been presented at the 9th EuroFM research symposium, 2010, in Madrid.

Citation

Windlinger, L., Nenonen, S. and Airo, K. (2016), "Specification and empirical exploration of a usability concept in the workplace", Facilities, Vol. 34 No. 11/12, pp. 649-661. https://doi.org/10.1108/F-01-2015-0003

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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