[EMERGING]Emerging
Cognitive test scores measured against CO2, ventilation, and VOC levels in an office setting
In a controlled office-simulation experiment, participants' scores on a cognitive-function test instrument were reported to differ across ventilation, CO2, and VOC conditions.
How to read this
This library reports what studies found. An entry describes a study's design, its findings in its own terms, and its limits. Nothing here is a claim about what a Sage Co. home does, delivers, or prevents.
Last reviewed August 30, 2026.
What they studied
- A double-blind, controlled exposure study run in a simulated office environment over six full working days.
- Twenty-four participants — professionals in architecture, design, engineering, and related fields — worked normally while ventilation rate, carbon dioxide concentration, and volatile organic compound levels were varied by condition.
- Cognitive function was measured with the Strategic Management Simulation instrument at the end of each exposure day.
What they found
- The authors reported higher average cognitive-function scores on the study's instrument under the higher-ventilation and lower-VOC conditions than under the conventional-building condition.
- Differences were reported across several of the instrument's individual domains, not only the composite score.
- The reported associations were with the measured exposure conditions in this simulated office, over single working days.
What this study does not establish
- Twenty-four participants, one simulated office, six days — a small, short experiment, not a population study.
- The setting is an office, not a residence; occupancy patterns, sources, and exposure durations differ in homes.
- The outcome is a score on a management-simulation instrument, not a clinical or health outcome.
- This entry reports the study. It is not a statement about any building Sage Co. designs or constructs.
Source
Allen JG, MacNaughton P, Satish U, Santanam S, Vallarino J, Spengler JD (2016). Associations of cognitive function scores with carbon dioxide, ventilation, and volatile organic compound exposures in office workers: a controlled exposure study of green and conventional office environments. Environmental Health Perspectives 124(6):805–812.
ventilationcarbon dioxideVOCscontrolled exposure
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