Several variables further affect perceived privacy in the work place. These include norms regarding the acceptability of closing the door; social variables (for instance, individuals working in cohesive work groups often report less need for privacy); size of the work group (people in larger open spaces report a greater sense of personal privacy related to feelings of anonymity); and task variables (jobs that demand intense concentration or creative thinking require more protection from distractions than routine jobs where too much isolation leads to stress, boredom, fatigue, and reduced morale).

Different job requirements affect not only how much privacy people need, but also what they perceive privacy to be. Depending upon the requirements of their particular jobs, workers’ definitions of privacy might emphasize control over social contact, control over distraction and interruption, autonomy from supervision, or conversational privacy.

In the absence of four walls and a door, people will begin to use other physical means to achieve the level of privacy they require. Some of these means include social rules or manners. For example, the need for privacy may be manifested by workers avoiding eye contact, or moving away from the work space to the quiet of a library or the anonymity of a cafeteria. They may structure their space to limit the activity that can take place by barricading themselves behind piles of boxes and books, or by tuning in to a portable stereo to help screen extraneous sounds.

Obviously, such escapes to greater perceived privacy are inefficient and create inconsistencies within the office environment. There is, subsequently, merit to the development of a number of different types of spaces designed to meet the various privacy needs of many different people in the work place.