International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics最新文献

Procrastination is a prevalent phenomenon among students in higher education that results in negative consequences. Past research investigated the changes in students' procrastination primarily in face-to-face settings and reported mixed findings relying on self-reported questionnaires and discrete measurements such as submission times. In this study, we build on this research, considering both face-to-face and online learning environments when investigating changes in procrastination over an academic term. To quantify individuals' procrastination, we use deadline reactivity, an individual's tendency to procrastinate based on longitudinal data, and time proximity of submission to deadline based on discrete data. We find the significant main effect of time in the academic term on deadline reactivity and time proximity of submission to deadline, indicating that in both the face-to-face and online learning environments, students' procrastination increases as the term progresses. We also construct predictive models of deadline reactivity that could be estimated with the time proximity of submission to deadline, learning environments, and time in the academic term. Our results suggest that the instructors' efforts to intervene in students' procrastination would be more required in the second half of the academic term when procrastination is highest.

Virtual reality can simulate virtual heights and increase postural sway, while adding a cognitive task has a potential stabilization effect on posture stability. Our purpose was to observe the change of postural steadiness in different virtual heights, with or without an added-on cognitive task. Thirty young and healthy participants completed standing tasks in the real world and three virtual heights with or without a concurrent simple reaction time (SRT) task in a virtual environment. Most of the center of pressure parameters significantly increased while standing without an SRT task at virtual heights compared with the real world, but this difference was not observed while standing with an SRT task. The height-dependent effect for postural steadiness was not documented. Perceived distress scores were generally low and increased at exposure to the 12-m height compared to the 0-m height. There was no difference in SRT at the three virtual heights. Our results documented a destabilizing effect of a virtual environment, but were not able to confirm a height-dependent effect. A concurrent SRT task increased steadiness in virtual environment, and might have potentials being used as a training approach to enhance postural steadiness for at-height workers.

The emergence of exoskeletons has opened new opportunities to reduce back injuries in the construction industry. Perspectives of construction stakeholders regarding factors that influence adoption of exoskeletons, would inform successful implementation of exoskeletons in the construction industry. This study aims to understand factors that are critical for the adoption of back-support exoskeletons in the construction industry. Industry practitioners were surveyed to identify the important stakeholders whose perspectives are critical to decisions regarding the adoption of exoskeletons. The survey also identifies the factors that could influence the implementation of exoskeletons in the construction industry. Analytical hierarchy process was employed to evaluate and rank the factors. Informed by the survey results, two focus groups were conducted to understand how the factors influence the implementation process. The results identified construction workers, supervisors, regulatory bodies, ergonomists, corporate management, and safety professionals as the key stakeholders for exoskeleton adoption in the construction industry. Exoskeleton features such as usability, durability, long-term benefits and compatibility with work tasks are the most important facilitators, whereas catch and snag risks, fit, weight, and cost justification are the most critical barriers. The focus group discussions highlighted the benefits and applications of back-support exoskeletons, design modifications to exoskeletons, and challenges to adopting exoskeletons in the construction industry. Construction companies could leverage these findings to develop exoskeleton implementation strategies. Researchers and designers could use the design modifications to improve adaptability of exoskeletons for construction work. This study contributes to the socio-technical systems theory by defining key decision-makers and factors influencing exoskeleton adoption.

Background

Work in the slaughterhouse industry increase the risk of shoulder disorders due to high occupational mechanical exposures. Assistive devices, such as exoskeletons, have been developed to reduce the mechanical exposures, but few studies have investigated exoskeleton's feasibility, when used in a workplace setting.

Objectives

The objective was to explore managers' and workers' expectations and experiences related to using a shoulder exoskeleton, and to evaluate its feasibility compared to an existing assistive device (a ‘lifting glove’) at a Danish slaughterhouse.

Participants

The participants included 26 production line workers and their managers at a packaging department at a large slaughterhouse facility.

Methods

In a 5-month field study, data on worker's expectations and experiences of using a shoulder exoskeleton, was compared to a lifting glove and to working without any assistive device. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and on-site observations.

Results

Expectations were that shoulder exoskeletons would reduce the mechanical exposure and strain in workers. Some managers also expected that workers could handle more weight/produce more and that the need for job rotation could be reduced. Workers reported the exoskeleton to ‘straighten the body’, and reduced strain, but e others experienced no perceived support or found donning and doffing too time consuming.

Conclusion

We found different expectations as to what the shoulder exoskeleton should achieve. This could influence the evaluation of the feasibility of using a shoulder exoskeleton in slaughterhouse work. To facilitate the feasibility of exoskeletons it is important to explicate different expectations and to allow for individual tailoring in its implementation.

The occurrence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) is influenced by various factors and significantly impacts workers' mobility and flexibility. However, the degrees of influence and the relationship of the influencing factors with WMSDs remain unclear. Therefore, it is quite important to propose a comprehensive analysis of underlying factors of WMSDs from a system perspective. In this study, we utilize a meta-analytic approach to conduct a comprehensive analysis. Specifically, we extend the Biological-psychological-social (BPS) model to investigate the main factors of WMSDs, thus illuminating the associations between these factors and their varying degrees of influence on WMSDs. Through a combination of qualitative development and quantitative meta-analysis, we propose a specific BPS model tailored to WMSDs. Our BPS model encompasses three main factors: psychological, social, and biological, and the biological factor is further categorized into adjustable and fixed sub-factors. The modeling results demonstrate that social factor and fixed biological factor are the main aspects that have a significant influence on WMSDs, while psychological factor mainly regulate the effect of adjustable biological factor on WMSD. Social factor also has a mediating effect between biological factors and WMSDs. Our study reveals interactions among biological, psychological, and social factors, and provides comprehensive and holistic guidance for WMSD prevention and intervention based on the extended BPS model. Moreover, we offer actionable suggestions for WMSD intervention. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of WMSDs and provides valuable insights for designing effective preventive measures and interventions to mitigate the impact of WMSDs on workers’ health and well-being.

Lack of situation awareness (SA) is a major source of human error in forklift operations. Effective assessment of SA levels is a critical link in improving the SA of forklift operators. Aiming at the intrusive, subjective and intermittent problems of current measurement methods, this paper proposed a SA recognition method based on eye movement and electroencephalography (EEG) features. A forklift operation experiment was designed in a real-life scenario, where eye movement and EEG data of forklift operators were collected, and the Situation Awareness Rating Technique (SART) method was used to calculate SA scores. Independent sample t-test and Mann-Whitney test were used to investigate the differences in eye movement and EEG indicators among participants with different SA levels. Finally, the classification models of K-Nearest neighbor (KNN), Random Forest (RF) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were used to recognize the SA levels of forklift operators. The results indicated that the visiting time indicators, fixation time indicators and fixation count indicators in particular Areas of Interest (AOIs) are significantly different from the SA levels; The combined EEG indicators θ/β, (α+θ)/(α+β), θ/(α+β) in Frontal (F) lobe, Parietal (P) lobe and Central (C) lobe, and (α+θ)/β in P lobe and C lobe are significantly different from the SA levels; The average recognition accuracies of the models of KNN, RF and SVM are 90.61%, 94.18% and 91.15%, respectively, with the RF model having the highest recognition accuracy. The results confirmed that the method can be used to assess the SA of forklift operators in the real environment, which provides a new avenue for SA measurement.

A camera monitor system (CMS) provides side/rear views via in-vehicle displays by replacing the existing mirrors with miniature cameras. Two surveys were conducted to determine the overall perception of truck drivers toward CMS compared to the conventional mirrors and to identify the ergonomic CMS display layout. Thirty experienced truck drivers evaluated CMS compared to the existing mirror system using six evaluation measures (intention to use, safety, convenience, rapidity and accuracy, preference, and superiority). Each respondent also evaluated eight different layout design alternatives using seven ergonomic evaluation measures (rapidity, accuracy, safety, convenience, learnability, intuitiveness, and preference). The design alternatives were developed by combining the locations of two truck CMS displays – one is side display replacing the main and wide-angle exterior mirrors and the other one is front display replacing the front mirror. The study results revealed that truck drivers rated the CMS highly compared to the existing mirror system across all six measures, suggesting the need for further academic and industrial research/development and thereby wider introduction of truck CMS. Also, the layout wherein the side and front displays were positioned at the A-pillar and middle-top-of-windshield locations, respectively, was found to be the best and its design characteristics were: 1) spatial correspondence between the provided information and the in-vehicle location for both the side and front displays, 2) spatial compatibility with driver expectation for the side display, 3) reduction in the eye movement required for the front display, and 4) spatial compatibility by relative position between the side and front displays.

As the cost of rendering immersive virtual reality goes down, VR technology has the potential to improve the learning outcomes of educational and training programs. In this context, it is important to identify the advantages and pitfalls of using VR as a training tool. This review is an attempt to evaluate VR technology as a training tool and various factors that impact its effectiveness. It was found that virtual reality has been used and tested extensively in surgical training with mixed results. Apart from the effectiveness and the cost of VR as a training tool, the other factors that will influence the widespread adoption of this technology for training are skill retention and task interruption. If VR is to be used for longer training sessions, interruptions are inevitable in the form of restroom breaks, texting etc., and hence it is important to study their impact on learning outcomes. Hence, a brief review of these topics in the context of VR and learning has been included in this study. In conclusion, it was found that although the use of VR as a training tool holds a lot of promise, its widespread adoption will depend on its adaptability to different training settings and its impact on learning outcomes, including factors like skill retention and task interruption.

Background

Computer work often involves prolonged periods of static sitting, which can result in incorrect posture and increase the risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders and associated pain. The incidence of neck pain among computer workers is increasing due to the association with incorrect posture. To solve the problem accurately, it is necessary to correct the incorrect posture.

Objective

This study investigated how the angle and muscle activity of the upper body changed when a posture correction feedback (PCF) system was applied during computer work.

Methods

Fifteen healthy, young adults participated in this study that was conducted in two sessions of 16 min each: the first without feedback and the second with feedback. Neck and trunk angle changes of the participants, as well as cervical erector spinae, upper trapezius, and thoracic erector spinae muscle activation, were measured during computer work. Kinematic and kinetic data were analyzed using a two-way repeated analysis of variance.

Results

Neck and trunk flexion were reduced with the feedback system. Muscle activation of the cervical erector spinae significantly increased over time with computer use and decreased with feedback system use (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Our study demonstrates the PCF system may be an effective tool for alleviating postural stress in the neck and trunk in an office setting.

Relevance to industry

The PCF system can assist computer workers in improving posture. This demonstrates ergonomic benefits and does not interfere with computer work, making it suitable for use in a real work environment. This can help prevent musculoskeletal disorders and associated pain resulting from prolonged computer work.

People's emergency evacuation behavior is heavily reliant on spatial knowledge. Different spatial cognitive ways shape spatial knowledge differently. To investigate the effect of different cognitive ways on people's wayfinding performance in an indoor fire situation. The study used a virtual reality simulation of a shopping mall environment, and 128 participants were recruited for the experiment. The experiment divided the participants into six groups and placed them in two scenarios, one with and one without fire. This study also explored two other intervention behaviors to improve the participants' evacuation behaviors. The results showed that participants who used navigation had shorter walking distances and wayfinding times than those who used the You are here (YAH) map. Secondly, participants in the fire scenario walked longer distances and took longer to evacuate than those in the no-fire scenario, and they perceived successful evacuation to be more difficult. Thirdly, the intervention behavior effectively improved the participants' evacuation behavior and increased the efficiency of the evacuation. The leader's intervention was more effective in helping participants evacuate than the range intervention in this experimental setting. The findings may advance the understanding of human evacuation behavior and provide important practical implications for people's safety and emergency preparedness in shopping malls.