A cold war is being waged in offices from coast to coast, pitting men and women against each other for control of the air conditioner.
Recent reports of offices divided over a few critical degrees have been causing a stir, with women bundling up in thick cardigans and woolen blankets while men kick back and soak in the chill.
And now, a recent study offers an explanation as to why our temperature preferences vary and suggests a historical explanation for the workplace ice age.
New research published in the Nature Climate Journal suggests that air-conditioning levels in many buildings are based on standards set decades ago.
In the 1960s, studies were carried out to uncover the ideal work environment. However, the barometer for these tests was a 40-year-old man weighing about 154 pounds. The research may have made sense at the time, when men outweighed women in office culture.
But nowadays, when the workforce is about 50 per cent female, the one-temperature-fits-all standard no longer applies. And yet, many of the decades-old thermostat levels haven’t budged, the study suggests.
Biology also comes into play. Scientists have found that, generally speaking, women prefer higher room temperatures, with the average ideal at a warm 25 C.
However, men prefer a cooler work environment, with 22 C being the optimal temperature for guys.
“Women tend to run at a lower metabolic rate. In other words, their body doesn’t churn out as much energy, and as a result of that, they tend to be a little bit cooler,” emergency medicine specialist Dr. Mitch Shulman told CTV News.
With a report from CTV’s Vanessa Lee
