International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics最新文献

In an era where digital multitasking is universal, the necessity to switch between devices is vital. The effect of switching modes between devices on the user experience remains unclear. This study investigates the impact of switching modes on task performance and user perception within interconnected device environments. A within-subject experiment utilizing memory recall tasks was implemented to test three switching modes: seamless switching, passive switching, and switching with feedforward and feedback. Task accuracy rate, perceived interruption, perceived control, and behavioral intention were measured. Results indicated that seamless switching outperformed passive switching in task accuracy rate. Passive switching elicited the highest level of perceived interruption, while switching with feedforward and feedback substantially improved the perceived control of users over seamless switching. The behavioral intention to use seamless switching and switching with feedforward and feedback was considerably higher than that for passive switching. This research provides insights into the comparative benefits of seamless switching and switching with feedforward and feedback, particularly regarding their influence on user perception. Practical implications for the design of interconnected device switching and the management of device ecosystems are also presented.

The effects of circadian rhythms and night work on performance have been extensively studied using standardized, non-work-related tasks in laboratory settings. However, field research on work performance is scarce in this domain. This study addresses this gap by analyzing four million behavioral responses from 1437 security officers at an international airport. We compared threat detection performance during the routine security screening of passengers' baggage X-ray images across night shifts (shift starting between 0:00 and 2:59), early morning shifts (starting between 3:00 and 5:59), and standard morning shifts (starting between 6:00 and 7:59). Processing times followed the circadian rhythm of attention found in laboratory studies, indicating that the rhythm affects real-life work performance. False alarm rates (i.e. false target present responses) were slightly higher during night and early morning shifts than during standard morning shifts, with no significant difference in the security-relevant hit rates (i.e. true target present responses). Furthermore, we found no performance differences between night work and early morning shifts, suggesting that both can disrupt employees’ natural sleep patterns with implications on performance.

This study explores the impact of trust and perceived justice on task performance within UAE public sector organizations, emphasizing the mediating role of autonomy and the moderating effect of organizational culture. This research was driven by gaps in the current understanding of how individual perceptions of fairness and trust impact practical outcomes in the public sector. Through a survey of 273 public sector employees and structural equation modeling, this study demonstrates how trust and perceived justice significantly enhance task performance, with autonomy serving as a crucial mediator. Organizational culture also plays a complex role in moderating these effects, adding a cultural context layer to the theoretical framework grounded in social exchange theory. This study contributes to this field by providing empirical evidence supporting the enhancement of autonomy and justice perceptions to improve employee performance in the public sector. This contribution is particularly significant as it challenges traditional views on the trust-autonomy relationship and offers new insights into the role of organizational culture. By highlighting these dynamics, this study fills a crucial gap in the literature and also offers a model that can guide future research and practical applications in similar contexts. The findings underscore the necessity of fostering trust and perceived justice within organizations, recommending that leaders focus on enhancing autonomy and carefully consider the influence of organizational culture. This approach promises to improve task performance and employee satisfaction, thereby contributing to a more effective administration and service delivery in the public sector.

Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a promising tool for training. Our study focused on training for forklift driving, to address an ongoing worker shortage, and the unknown impact of repeated VR training on task performance and kinematic adaptations. We trained 20 novice participants using a VR forklift simulator over two days, with two trials on each day, and including three different driving lessons of varying difficulties. Driving performance was assessed using task completion time, and we quantified kinematics of the head, shoulder, and lumbar spine. Repeated training reduced task completion time (up to ∼29.8% of initial trial) and decreased both kinematic variability and peak range of motion, though these effects were larger for lessons requiring higher precision than simple driving maneuvers. Our results highlight the potential of VR as an effective training environment for novice drivers and suggest that monitoring kinematics could help track skill acquisition during such training.

Developing pilot workload assessment method is conducive to improving pilot work efficiency and enhancing the reliability of flight operations. In this study, a pilot workload model based on task complexity analysis is built to predict the changing trend of workload under various task scenarios with different task difficulties. Based on multiple resource theory and entropy theory, a pilot workload model is constructed by integrating the analysis of node task complexity and structure task complexity. Further, the Bedford scale and time pressure survey are both adopted to subjectively investigate the workload of 25 flying cadets in the traffic pattern task to verify the model. The correlation coefficients between the theoretical prediction results and the actual measurement results are not less than 0.85, supporting the validity of the model. Besides, compared with the original Bedford workload scale, consideration of time pressure can effectively improve the consistencies between the theoretical prediction results of the model and the actual evaluation results of the flying cadets, indicating the advantage of strengthening the time pressure dimension when using the classic Bedford workload scale to measure the pilot workload. The pilot workload measurement model based on task complexity analysis proposed in this study can provide method support for the optimization designs of flight tasks and pilot training.