Iranian Journal of Ergonomics

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Introduction: Regarding to the competing and increasing competitions in organization and markets, paying attention to manpower and his quality of work life have progressively become important. This study was conducted with the objective of investigating of quality of working life and determination of its related factors in Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS) staff. Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 218 employees of SUMS participated voluntarily. A questionnaire consisted of two parts was used as data collecting tool. In the first part, demographic and occupational characteristics, and in the second part questions about the quality of working life were included. Data were analyzed using statistical tests including Pearson Correlation, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U by SPSS software (Version 16.0). Results: Mean and standard deviation scores for the quality of working life of staff were 127.51±16.61. The results showed that there were associations between gender and income with quality of work life score (p<0.05), such that the quality of work life scores of women and high-income individuals were higher than those of men and lower- income staff. Age, job tenure, marital status, number of children, level of education, type of employment and job unit had no association with quality of work life score. Discussion: In this study, quality of work life had association with gender and income level of staff.

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Introduction: The maximum aerobic capacity (VO2-max) can be used to assess the cardio-respiratory condition and fit the physiological characteristics of workers to the work. This study was conducted to determine the correlation between the two methods of estimating the maximum aerobic capacity and its affecting factors among students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.

Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 104 students (54 males and 50 females) participated voluntarily (age ranged from 18 to 28 years). The subjects were assessed by step test according to Åstrand and ACSM protocols. The data collecting tool was a questionnaire including separate sections of demographic (age, sex, etc.), anthropometric (height, weight and BMI) and physiological (VO2-max) characteristics.

Results: The results revealed that the maximum aerobic capacity estimated from Åstrand and ACSM protocols were 3.21 (0.825) and 3.13 (0.707) l.min-1, respectively. Pearson correlation test showed high correlation between estimated maximum aerobic capacity via two protocols of Åstrand and ACSM (r=0.958). Meanwhile, there were significant associations among maximum aerobic capacity with weight, height, BMI and the number of hours of exercise per week.

Conclusion: The two methods for estimating the maximum aerobic capacity (Åstrand and ACSM) were highly correlated. Variables such as weight, height, BMI, and number of hours of exercise per week can be named as effective factors on VO2-m Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE AR-SA

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Introduction: In an educational environment, the quality of vision is integral to educational progress. Creating visual comfort and increasing efficiency and the desire to study are among the benefits of adjusting the lighting in classrooms and preventing visual impairment in the students. The present study was conducted to evaluate the degree of internal lighting in girls' schools across Hamadan in 2006 and 2014 so as to help identify their potential problems.

Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted in girls' schools across Hamadan on two different occasions –in 2006 and 2014. On each occasion, the average general and local lighting on the classroom blackboards were measured by the recommended methods of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America on non-sunny days using a Lux Meter and were then compared to the standard limits recommended in the Health and Safety Code of schools and by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America. In addition to the degree of lighting, certain quality assessment criteria were assessed, including the lighting layout, lamp maintenance, contrast, internal surface cleaning, lighting system maintenance, type of lamps and technical suitability of the design.

Results: Taking the criteria for favorable lighting conditions into account, less than 25% of the sites examined had favorable lighting on both occasions in 2006, only 16% of the classes had favorable general lighting and in 2014, the degree of lighting fell to an unacceptable range in all classes and only 6% of the entire classroom were covered by a standard degree of local lighting on the blackboard. The results also show that surface reflection coefficients are within the desirable range.

Conclusion: The lack of favorable general and local lighting on the blackboard at schools in 2014 and its comparison with the results of the 2006 lighting assessment indicate that providing standard lighting is still a problem for schools. Improper lighting layouts and the use of incandescents or inappropriate light bulbs are among the major causes of poor lighting conditions in girls' school across Hamadan. 

     

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Introduction: Sleep disorder is very common among employees and is considered as one of the crucial health problems. Sleep disorders have a negative impact on job performance. The present study was regarding the relationship of sleep quality, sleepiness and sickness absence.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 400 employees of a gas company through random sampling. The study data were collected using the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS). Mann-Whitney U test and Spearman’s correlation coefficient were applied for data analysis.

Results: While 43.2% of the participants enjoyed satisfactory sleep quality, 56.8% had unsatisfactory sleep quality. Statistical tests indicated a significant difference in sickness absence of the personnel with good and poor sleep qualities (P = 0.0001). Spearman’s correlation coefficient (ρ = 0.777) indicated a statistically significant correlation between sleepiness index and sickness absence (P = 0.0001).

Conclusions: The results showed a strong positive correlation in sleep quality, sleepiness index of the personnel and sickness absence; i.e. along with decline in sleep quality and incline in sleepiness, the personnel’s sickness absence increased.

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Background and Objectives: Factors affecting one's job performance include job stress, job calling and burnout. The purpose of this study was to determine the causal relationship between job stressors, job calling and job burnout among employees of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences.
Methods: This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was performed on 378 non-faculty members of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences. Data were collected using Maslach Burnout Inventory, Job Stress Questionnaire (HSE-Q) and Dik's job calling. To investigate the relationship between variables, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) method was used in AMOS version 24 software.
Results: The mean age of participants was 38.93 years. The components of job stressors and job calling had a positive and significant correlation with the components of job burnout (P<0.05). The measurement model was acceptable with the collected data. Job stressors indirectly and mediate the dimensions of presence and search of job calling are related to job burnout of medical university employees. The sum of squares of multiple correlations for job burnout variable was 0.56. This finding indicated that occupational stressors and job calling account for 52% of the variance in burnout.
Conclusion: Given the detrimental effects of burnout on employees, it is suggested that authorities reduce stressors such as the psychological and physical needs of the workplace, lack of support, job insecurity, and job calling.

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Background and Aim: A good work environment is a place where one can feel relaxed and focused. In the field of environmental psychology, color is one of the environmental factors that greatly influence human perception and behavior. The purpose of this systematic review study was to investigate the effect of color on work environment.
Methods: This article is a systematic review study. Full-text and English-language articles published in PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, Google Scholar were searched using the following keywords: Color perception, color ergonomics, color psychology, color effect, mental health and Workplace. The search was without time limit, and 45 eligible articles were reviewed.
Results: Initially, 262 articles were identified from different databases. Among them, 93 articles met the criteria for entering the study. After that, 48 articles were removed from the study due to lack of experimental studies and 45 articles were selected for final review. A total of 18 studies focused on color priority, 25 studies on mood and emotions, 6 studies on health outcomes, and 19 studies on the effect of workplace color on work-related outcomes. The results showed that color has a significant effect on emotions (eg mood), well-being (eg stress, comfort, well-being) and performance (eg productivity, creativity).
Conclusion: Workplace color should be considered as one of the main ways to promote the (mental and physical) health of individuals.

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Background and Objectives: One of the most important aspects of ergonomics is physiologic balance between human characteristics and their jobs. This study aimed to investigate the physiological characteristics of janitor, safety guard and facility workers of a work organization and determine their physiological fit.
Methods: A total of 70 staff were evaluated using Queen's college step test, N20 body composition analyzer, SECA scale, RS800CX Polar pacemaker. Descriptive statistics and analytical tests including ANOVA and Pearson correlation were used. The data was analyzed using SPSS 20.
Results: Body Mass Index (BMI) and fat percentage (Fat%) of employees were beyond the optimal range, but Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR) were in the range. Also, the average Maximum Volume of Oxygen consumption (VO_2max) were 42/1±62/33 mL/kg/min and the average of working capacity (maximum Physical Work Capacity: PWC_max) were 16/63±4/46 kcal/min.
Conclusion: The results indicated that the level of some physical characteristics is inappropriate, physical fitness is poor and individual capabilities and job requirements are not in balance. Using standardized recruitment tests, providing the possibility of sports activities (by organizations) and finding integrated indicators that simultaneously take into account the physical, mental, social and environmental capabilities of individuals to determine work capacity (by researchers), can be facilitating steps to establish an ergonomic balance in the workplace.

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