What research says about ABW. There is a lot of research dedicated to figuring out how ABW affects peoples behaviour and wellbeing. This section summarizes the findings. Before doing so, it is important to note two caveats. First, almost all research concerns user surveys that measure peoples perceptions rather than their actual behaviour. The second caveat is that the evidence base is still rather limited, with a lot of individual case studies and only a few large data sets. This means that the conclusions below should be regarded as indications rather than absolute truths. Quite happyAre employees happy in an ABW office? Research suggestsMIXED FEELINGSthat they are, but the evidence is mixed. Multiple studiesThere are things that employees like about activity-based working, and there are things show that people appreciate the availability of spaces forthat they dont like. According to benchmark breaks and collaboration, the aesthetics, and the improveddata from the Center for People and interaction with colleagues. 16, 17But there are also reportsBuildings, the picture is as follows:21of dissatisfaction, especially in relation to misuse of theBest likedconcept (e.g. territorial behaviour), design mistakes (e.g.(50% respondents satisfied/very satisfied)bad acoustics) and flawed implementation processes (e.g.Possibilities for communicationa lack of user involvement). 18, 19 In general, however, the prosAtmosphere/expression of the interiorQuality of support servicesseem to outweigh the cons. An extensive Swedish studyFunctionality/comfort of workplacesshowed that ABW offices, together with cellular offices,ICT facilitiesgenerated the highest satisfaction scores, while open-planSpatial layoutoffices scored worst. 20 Openness of spacesLeast likedSmall generational differences ( 50% respondents dissatisfied/very It is often argued that activity-based working is moredissatisfied)Lack of privacysuitable for younger workers than for older ones. There isPossibilities for concentrationsome data that seems to support this. Research from the Dutch Center for People and Buildings shows that young employees ( 31 years) are generally more positive about ABW than older ones. 22Likewise, data from Leesman, a commercial research company, shows that young employees consider ABW more effective than their older colleagues. 23The question is why. Are young workers more flexible, and older ones more change-averse? Perhaps, but in both data sets the differences are too small to justify such generational stereotyping. Other factors, such as where people are in their career, are more likely to play a role. 24Better interactionMany organizations hope that ABW will help to improve employee interaction (breaking down the silos, as managers like to say) and this notion is supported by research. 25In surveys conducted by the Center for People 27