Australian and U.S. Work Places: A Trade–Off Study

Abstract

This study revealed several issues that should he considered when designing workplaces for different national contexts. The objective of the study was to determine whether differences between U.S. and Australian contexts affect the way employees engaged in similar tasks would prefer to set up their working environments, at both the workstation and organizational levels. Studies were conducted in the autumn of 1987 using “The Workstation Game” in several Australian institutions. The results were compared with information collected previously in the U.S. (1982–1987). The study revealed that national cultural differences were more important than either company type or job task similarities in determining workplace design preferences. Workstation furniture was the most important factor for Australians, whereas the U.S. groups placed greater importance on computer–augmented work tools.