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Designing Space to Support Knowledge Work

Georgia Institute of Technology

Sonit Bafna

Georgia Institute of Technology

Ritu Bajaj

Steelcase, Inc.

Joyce Bromberg

Steelcase, Inc.

Christine Congdon

Steelcase, Inc.

Mahbub Rashid

University of Kansas

Susan Warmels

Steelcase, Inc.

Yan Zhang

Georgia Institute of Technology

Craig Zimring

Georgia Institute of Technology

Based on spatial analysis, network analysis, self-assessment questionnaires, field discussions and accounting documents, the authors discuss how workplace design and spatial layout support productivity in a communication design organization. The authors suggest that the impact of design goes beyond supporting more intense patterns of interaction and smoother flows of information. Workplace design and layout provide an intelligible framework within which collective knowledge is continuously explored, represented, interpreted, and transformed in relation to ongoing projects. Thus, the structure of space supports an organizational culture with cognitive functions.

Key Words: office design • network analysis • space syntax • productivity • community-based planning

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This version was published on November 1, 2007

Environment and Behavior, Vol. 39, No. 6, 815-840 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/0013916506297216


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