Erik,
I absolutely agree that silence -- or a reasonable equivalent (white
noise, wind, water, and all the other W's) are optimum for creativity.
It's what I've observed to be true in my own work and what I've
invariably heard from people who find themselves in a position where
they are forced by external circumstances to work in noise-less
situation (they forgot their iPod and work in an actual one-person
office with a door, for example) have found that they work better
without the music. However (and this is a huge issue for most workers)
working in silence is not an option in the standard cube-farm or open
plan office. And in those cases where silence is enforced, it feels
creepy. This is my big argument against the idea that "open plan
offices are more productive" (and the studies I've seen over the years
have come to the reverse conclusion) because when your office is
planned for you to interact, your interaction is interfering with
someone else's concentration.
I believe that creativity and innovation require both individual,
concentrated attention in silence and vocal, messy, interaction, and
that good office planning provides for both (individual, sound
insulated spaces for individual work and "war rooms" for cooperative
work). I know that company I worked at where I was most productive
used cubes, but sound insulated and 8 feet tall, assigned conference
rooms for each project, and IMing was the preferred (by the employees)
method of communicating among the cubes.
But until we have better standard work spaces in companies, we have to
expect that people will use their earphones and their music to create
their own acoustic spaces.
Katie Albers
Founder & Principal Consultant
FirstThought
User Experience Strategy & Project Management
310 356 7550
[email protected]
On Feb 28, 2009, at 12:48 PM, Eirik Midttun wrote:
@Katie: I read the book a while ago, but I remember it as a controlled
experiment with only music as the variable. Those who did not listen
to music worked undisturbed.
I buy the argument that music can shield disturbances that are far
worse, but shouldn't that problem be solved in another way.
Inadequate workspace, disturbances, and interruptions are actual
productivity killers, I claim I didn't make for music. (This is also
discussed in "Peopleware")
For me the study is more of story than scientific proof. I keep
thinking of it when the work/music issue comes up.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Posted from the new ixda.org
http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=39321
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