Advisor

Wearables in the Workplace

Isabelle J. C. Thibau, MPH
2015

Wearables are becoming increasingly popular among people of all ages as technology gets more integrated into our everyday surroundings and become necessary resources for helping us live our lives. Wearables have the capability to enhance our lives by making some tasks or functions easier (such as monitoring fitness or nutrition tracking), and can even help us perform necessary, daily tasks (reminding a user when to take pills, or to move after being sedentary for too long). So what exactly are wearables?

The New Organizational Template: How to Design Work and Workplaces for Employee Health & Well-Being

Cristina Banks, PhD
2014

This paper presents a brief summary of major findings regarding employee health and well-being based on the scientific literature, including current and emerging approaches to preventing illness and injury in organizations, promoting health and well-being in the workplace, and mitigating health problems through organizational programs. I also offer suggestions for new approaches to research on employee health and well-being in order to significantly improve our chances of turning the corner on the growing health crisis. But first, let me describe the size of the problem we are facing.

Courage, Compassion, and Resilience Make Great Workplaces

Michael Pearn, PhD
2014

Most of what is taught in business schools and executive development programs, though certainly relevant, does not contribute significantly to the creation of workplaces that enable human beings to flourish and engage meaningfully in the success of their organizations.

With the massive and endlessly growing provision of advice and guidance and education on how to run successful and/or effective organizations, the question remains: “Why haven’t we become better at it”? With so many companies struggling to survive, let alone thrive, in the always on, 24/7, inter-connected world we...

Creating Healthy Workplaces

Natalie Mutch
2014

America is in the midst of a health crisis. Physical and mental health issues ranging from obesity levels, lack of physical activity, stress, anxiety and depression are growing at an alarming rate but individuals have difficulty doing it alone, and “quick fix” diets, exercise regimens, job and organization redesign have not improved Americans’ health and well-being appreciably. A review of the literature on the efficacy of different approaches to improving working Americans’ health and well-being, whether it is through preventive programs, health promotion programs, or ill-health...

HealthyWorkplaces Manifesto

Cristina Banks, PhD
2014

Many writers acknowledge that in the next decade or so, the U.S. will experience a “health tsunami” (Reich, 2012). Several factors are driving us in that direction: the aging Baby Boomers, the toxic environment, a compromised food supply, the shortage of clean and abundant water, stressful work, growing substance abuse, lack of adequate and universal healthcare, and stagnant and declining wages, among other things.

There appear to be three major approaches to stemming the tide: (1) developing and selling more and different drugs and treatments; (2) making drugs and treatments more...

Increasing Participation Rates in Wellness Programs for Small and Medium Organizations Technical Report

Cristina Banks, PhD
Carolyn Winslow, PhD
Isabelle J. C. Thibau, MPH
2018

The Interdisciplinary Center for Healthy Workplaces (ICHW) at UC Berkeley and Transamerica Center for Health Studies® (TCHS) are releasing the new, evidence-based analysis, Increasing Participation Rates in Wellness Programs for Small and Medium Organizations Technical Report.

This report analyzes how to increase employee participation in wellness programs, especially in small and medium organizations. Methods included literature reviews, focus groups with 29 organizations, analysis of survey data, and development of an employer guide. Key findings:...

Health Technology in the Workplace: Leveraging technology to protect and improve worker health

Cristina Banks, PhD
2015

The report examines how technology can interface with workplace design to improve worker health and wellbeing.

Main research objectives:

Investigate how technology can interface with workplace structure to create a healthier workforce Explore factors companies consider when adopting health-enabling technology

Key findings:

Technology can be integrated into the workplace to enhance work environments and contribute to positive worker outcomes. This includes wearables, mobile apps, sensors, and other devices. Technologies can provide...

A Policy to Do Better Next Time: Lessons Learned From the COVID‐19 Pandemic

Ed Yelin, PhD
Cristina Banks, PhD
Patti Katz, PhD
2020

This editorial, written in April 2020, reflects on early lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and proposes policy considerations for future pandemics. The authors, Yelin, Katz, and Banks, highlight several key points:

The importance of early action in implementing shelter-in-place orders to slow disease spread. The need to balance public health concerns with economic impacts when deciding to lift restrictions. The shortcomings of "just-in-time" inventory practices in healthcare, advocating instead for planned redundancy in supplies and infrastructure. The role of the rheumatology...

Real World Spaces and Creative Thinking

Sally Augustin, PhD, MBA
Cynthia Milota, MA
Cristina Banks, PhD
2022

Neuroscientists have comprehensively assessed how design can support creative thinking, most often in studies that detail the effects of a single physical factor. Creativity-linked design elements that have been identified include colour (surface and light), visual complexity, plants in view, natural light, visible wood grain, aesthetic factors, soundscapes, comfortable environmental control, audio and visual distractions, ceiling height, opportunities for movement, access to needed tools/task support, nonverbal messages sent by a space, and chance for...

Designing Workplaces to Align with Culture(s)

Sally Augustin, PhD, MBA
2022

Neuroscience studies indicate that when workplace design recognizes, reflects, and respects both users’ national and organizational cultures wellbeing and performance soar (see, for example, Veitch, 2012), but national and organizational culture are generally separately considered. The reported project integrates neuroscience research related to organizational culture, national culture, and workplace design to develop a straightforward framework that can be used in practice to create work environments that support employees as they work to their full potential within the context of their...