Human Factors Methodology for Stress Evaluation in Machine-Paced Jobs: Some NIOSH Experiences.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cohen A
• Description:
  Methods used by NIOSH for investigating job stressors, particularly those associated with machine paced work, and their impact on worker health were discussed. Three major methodologies have been used: questionnaire surveys for determining psychological stressors and their effects; on site observations with checklists to evaluate environmental, equipment, or workstation features; and job task analysis and modeling to characterize elements of biomechanical stress and identify ways of reducing them. Questionnaire approaches were discussed. A model relating psychological stressors on the job to worker strains was described. The features of NIOSH questionnaires were considered. Problems associated with using questionnaire methods in evaluating job stress related to machine paced work were discussed. Site observations and checklists were considered. On site observations of working conditions are frequently used to complement questionnaire surveys. Such an approach has been used to successfully characterize job stress in video display terminal operators. A relatively simple checklist is currently being used to obtain data on the prevalence of job tasks nationwide that are repetitive in nature and which could cause health problems. The task analysis and modeling approach was described. A study of the biomechanical aspects of a machine paced turkey processing task was described as an example of this approach. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomechanical Phenomena Epidemiology Occupational Health Safety Stress, Psychological
• Keywords:
  Epidemiology; Job-stress; Occupational-health; Repetitive-work; Simulation-methods; Job-analysis; Biomechanics; Physiological-stress; Psychological-stress;
• Publisher:
  London
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Proceedings
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  151-157
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00176157
• Citation:
  Machine Pacing and Occupational Stress, Proceedings of the International Conference, Purdue University, March 1981 1981:151-157
• Editor(s):
  Salvendy G; Smith MJ
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1981
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Machine Pacing and Occupational Stress, Proceedings of the International Conference, Purdue University, March 1981
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7dc847c09aedf140bc731323e8446b4703641ae07d6ad9e7b7238120dab30b8f7dcaa9b938d34d035f87873a0fe7fec262d5d13dcaf290925445e82b6de3b57d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/242415/cdc_242415_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.02 KB ]