What Does Your Workspace Say about You?

Abstract

Approximately 70% of American workers personalize their workspaces. However, some employees personalize more than others, such as managers and employees with enclosed offices. Studies examining personality traits suggest that employees who personalize the most tend to be creative and have a high need for affiliation and a low need for privacy. However, major personality factors have not been examined. This study examines the relationships between workspace personalization and the Big Five personality factors by surveying 234 employees from 33 companies. Results indicate that personality is only indirectly related to personalization through employee characteristics such as status and type of workspace. Personalization is primarily predicted by the company’s personalization policy and an employee’s status and workspace.