Productivity

August 21, 2023

It has been brutally hot across the US southern states this summer.  Temperatures in Arkansas this week have (and will) hover over 100F (37.8C) with feels like temperatures (factoring humidity) of over 115F (46C).  That has made it hard for me to want to go outside to care for my containers or my yard.  The kids still want to go outside and eagerly rush the door when it is opened, but it is not long before they are ready to come back inside, and they always take a long drink before laying down exhausted.  Even inside the air conditioned house (kept at 80F/26.6C) I find it hard to get motivated to do much of anything.  I try and force myself to water in the evening and occasionally get to the store during the afternoon.  Beyond that I sit in front of the fan in my office and work crossword puzzles.  I wondered if my lack of productivity was due to the heat or just the general malaise of dog days of summer.

When I looked online, I found studies consistently confirm that room temperature and work productivity are directly related.  Research suggests a direct link between hot temperatures and lower productivity, but also that the correlation is more prominent in men.  Women were found to be more productive in warmer temperatures, especially when tackling verbal and mathematical tasks.  The results showed that women performed better in warmer temperatures, whereas men performed better in cooler temps.  The researchers noted the increase in women’s productivity at higher temperatures was much larger than the subsequent decrease in male productivity at the same temperature.  This suggests the best case scenario for a workplace is to err on the side of warm versus cool, as the decrease in the men’s productivity is canceled out by the increase in women’s productivity.  That assumes the genders are evenly distributed in terms of roles and responsibilities.  In the US, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s recommended indoor temperature as a range of 68F to 76F (20C to 24.5C).  

Overexertion in the heat can lead to heat exhaustion or heat stroke which can be fatal, and it is important for employees to take frequent breaks and stay hydrated on hot days.  This suggests employees would be less productive on a hot day compared to a day with pleasant weather.  The Becker Friedman Institute at the University of Chicago tested this idea by studying companies in India.  The researchers found that productivity declined at a rate of 2 to 4 percent for every 1.8 degree Fahrenheit (1C) after temperatures rose above 80F (27C). Workers were also more likely to take off work or call in sick during hot weather.  The study notes every time the average annual temperature in India rose by 1 degree Celsius, the country’s overall productivity declined by 3 percent.  Since global temperatures are set to rise over the next decades, this means we will all experience less productivity.

Thoughts:  Lack of productivity is often associated with the dog days of summer, or the hot, sultry days of summer.  While this is generally associated with the lazy dog sleeping in front of a fan, historically it referred to the period following the heliacal rising of the star system Sirius (the “Dog Star”), which Hellenistic astrology connected with heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck.  They are now taken to be the hottest and most uncomfortable part of summer in the Northern Hemisphere.  Productivity in the office, and the field, is a result of compromise.  That is true for the sexes as well as acclimatization.  Act for all.  Change is coming and it starts with you.