Designing for introverts: the workplace tips that feel ‘just right’

There has been a recent flurry of research on aligning personality with place design. What can we learn from these studies?

Tafti and associates (2024), for example, determined via a survey that introverts preferred images of enclosed spaces and colour combinations that made spaces seem smaller. They also preferred popular architectural styles to high-style designs and appeared not to follow norms and trends. A preference for greater spatial openness was more noticeable in female extroverts, according to the research.

Meanwhile, Li and teammates (2026) found that those who are conscientious seem to be motivated to take remedying undesirable situations into their own hands. The researchers share that if there are many conscientious people in a space, it ‘may benefit from decentralised, fine-tuned control systems.’ This is because conscientious individuals actively regulate the surrounding environment when discomfort arises.

In this article we’ll focus on designing spaces that are best for people who are more or less extraverted (the less extraverted among us are normally called ‘introverts’).

Personality profiles

Until Anni and colleagues (2025) released their research it was sometimes a challenge for designers to be sure of the likely personality profiles of the people who will use a space. However, the Anni-led team changed all that: you can explore their interactive application for occupational personality profiles, covering 263 different roles, here.

What else do we know about designing for people who are more or less introverted? Extraverts generally prefer more energising spaces while the reverse is true for introverts. As Little (2014) explains, this is due to differences in ‘neocortical areas in the brain: those high in extraversion have low levels of arousal, whereas introverts have high levels. Given that effective performance on daily tasks requires an optimal level of arousal, extraverts are typically seeking to increase their levels of arousal, whereas introverts are trying to lower theirs.’

Cain (2012) similarly shares that ‘introverts and extroverts differ in the level of outside stimulation that they need to function well. Introverts feel “just right” with less stimulation.’ Baranski and colleagues (2023) found that ‘open bench seating was more beneficial to momentary focus and happiness for employees high in extraversion.’ People who are more extraverted also prefer more open floorplans in all built environments than those who are more introverted (Tafti et al, 2024).

Design preferences

Extraverts generally select to sit on sofas and introverts on individual chairs (Osborn, 1988), and extraverts thrive in spaces that support social contact (Fingerman et al, 2022). Compared to introverts, extraverts are more open to communicating information about themselves, via personalisation for example, particularly as a way to encourage interaction (Gosling, 2008; Gosling et al, 2011). Art featuring people is often more popular with extraverts than introverts, who are more likely to prefer landscapes (Cardinet, 1958; Fishman, Ng, and Bellugi, 2011).

Finally, new research by Ye and teammates (2026) suggests that exposure to plants at work as a catalyst for employee performance and job satisfaction is particularly strong in effect for employees with lower extraversion.

Clearly, aligning personality and place design can have significant positive effects on wellbeing and performance.

Read more of the latest research insights from Sally Augustin in Research Roundup, her regular column in the Innovation Zone for WORKTECH Academy members and partners here.

Research sources

Katlin Anni, Uku Vainik, and Rene Mottus. 2025. ‘Personality Profiles of 263 Occupations.’ Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 110, no. 4, pp. 481-511.

Erica Baranski, Casey Lindberg, Brian Gilligan, Julia Fisher, Kelli Canada, Judith Heerwagen, Kevin Kampschroer, Esther Sternberg, and Matthias Mehl. 2023. ‘Personality, Workstation Type, Task Focus, and Happiness in the Workplace.’  Journal of Research in Personality, vol. 103, 104337.

Susan Cain. 2012. Quiet:  The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Crown:  New York.

1958. Cardinet. 1958. ‘Esthetic Preferences and Personality.’ L’Annee Psychologique, vol. 58, pp. 45-69.

Karen Fingerman, Yijung Kim, Shiyang Zhang, Yee Ng, and Kira Birditt. 2022. ‘Late Life in the Living Room:  Room Décor, Functional Limitations, and Personality.’ The Gerontologist, vol. 62, no. 4, pp. 519-529.

Fishman, R. Ng, U. Bellugi. 2011. ‘Do Extraverts Process Social Stimuli Differently from Introverts?’ Cognitive Neuroscience, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 67-73.

2008. Gosling. 2008. Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You. Basic Books: New York, NY.
2009. Gosling, A. Augustine, S. Vazire, N. Holtzman, and S. Gaddis. 2011. ‘Manifestations of Personality in Online Social Networks.’Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networks, vol. 14, no. 9, pp. 483-488.

Han Li, Rianne Appel-Meulenbroek, Theo Arentze, and Pieter-Jan Hoes. 2026. ‘Profiling Office Workers’ Comfort-Related Adaptive Actions: A Latent Class Analysis.’ Journal of Environmental Psychology, vol. 111, 102979.

Brian Little.  2014. Me, Myself, and Us. Public Affairs; New York.

1988. Osborn. 1988. ‘Personality Traits Expressed.’ Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol.14, pp. 368-373.

Mohsen Tafti, Masoud Ahmadzad-Asl, Gholamhossein Memarian, Mehrnaz Tafti. Reza Rajimehr, Sarvenaz Soltani, Fatemeh Mirfazeli, Abdol-Hossein Vahabie, Shima Moein, and Farhang Mozaffar. 2024. ‘Personality Traits Can Predict Architectural Preferences:  A Machine Learning Approach.’ Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, vol. 18, no. 5, pp. 750-761.

2026. Ye, P. Zhang, G. Ge, Q. Zhu, and C. Gui. 2026. ‘How Does a Green Workplace Make Employees Thrive at Work? The Moderating Role of Employee Extraversion.’ Current Psychology, vol. 45, no. 493.