I think we tend to underestimate the effect of environment and organization on the individual. A city (or office...) can be 'democratic' if it has a variety of

I think we tend to underestimate the effect of environment and organization on the individual. A city (or office...) can be 'democratic' if it has a variety of places to meet with different degrees of formality or organization, be it in a park, a public place or a side street. Or it could be 'authoritarian' if it's centered around institutions, makes the public easy to surveil and discourages deviation from the task at hand. It's easy to see how through a systematic understanding of these factors (or by instinct) leadership would want to build a city (or design an office) a certain way and it's worth paying close attention to what's going on in this regard.