Noise, Open Offices and Concentration

Noise is one of the most studied environmental influences on cognition and one of the least addressed in workplace design.

Which noise hurts most

Intermittent speech is the most disruptive for verbal tasks, and the effect is stronger when the speech is intelligible — the irrelevant speech effect is well documented. Unpredictable noise is worse than steady noise of the same volume, because habituation cannot occur. Continuous broadband sound is comparatively benign. This explains why an open-plan office can be more disruptive than a busier but less speech-dense environment.

What the workplace research shows

Studies of open-plan offices have generally found reduced satisfaction and, in several, reduced performance on demanding tasks compared with enclosed offices, with noise and interruption the most cited factors. Some research has found that moving to open plan reduced face-to-face interaction rather than increasing it. The evidence is not uniformly negative and the design details matter, but the simple claim that open plan improves collaboration has not held up well.

What helps

Masking intelligible speech is more effective than reducing volume, which is why broadband sound or non-lyrical audio works better than turning things down. Noise-cancelling headphones address steady noise better than speech, so combining them with masking sound is more effective than either alone. Facing away from movement reduces visual interruption. Where possible, doing demanding verbal work somewhere quiet is worth arranging deliberately rather than treating as a luxury.

If you are considering Cognicept

Read the Cognicept ingredients page, which sets out both published ingredient lists side by side, and check the guarantee terms. If you take any prescription medication, obtain the supplement facts panel and show it to a pharmacist — the two candidate formulas carry quite different interaction profiles. Our buyer’s checklist sets out twelve checks.