Iranian Journal of Ergonomics

Introduction: In recent years, compact fluorescent lamps have been more widely used across the country as a means of optimizing energy consumption. Given the health consequences of lighting sources, the present study was conducted to investigate the intensity of electromagnetic fields emitted by common compact fluorescent lamps.

Materials and Methods: The study examined 54 compact fluorescent lamp bulbs manufactured in local and international factories. The intensity of the electromagnetic fields emitted was measured at a very low frequency (VLF) and an extremely low frequency (ELF) using field measuring devices (Holaday HI 3603 and HI 3604 models). The data obtained were analyzed in SPSS.

Findings: The intensity of the emitted electric and magnetic fields decreased with the increase in their distance from the sources. At the reference point of 25 cm, the effective intensity of the electric field was 2.25 v/m at the very low frequency and 15.39 v/m at the extremely low frequency. The intensity of the magnetic fields was 0.47 mA/m at the very low frequency and 9.41 mA/m at the extremely low frequency. All the values were below the national exposure limits. There was a significant difference between the effective intensity of the electric and magnetic fields based on the lamps' manufacturers (p<0.05).

Conclusion: Although the intensities of the electromagnetic fields of the lamps were lower than the exposure limits, due to lack of conclusive evidence on the biological effects of fields, minimizing the public exposure to fields is essential. The use of standard-quality lamps is therefore highly recommended as a preventive measure.

Introduction: Creating an appropriate and efficient workplace environment is a fundamental part of businesses in the modern world. The proper design of interior spaces and exterior facades in workplaces invigorates the workforce and reduces the risk of depression for them, while also improving the quality of their work and the attraction of customers.

 Nevertheless, architects tend to design workplace environments solely based on personal taste and emotional preferences. The present study designed a branch of Bank Maskan in Sari, Iran, by using efficient scientific methods and with a focus on the quantitative and qualitative aspects of design.

Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted to design a workplace environment using the Kansei engineering method. It used the facade openings of a branch of Maskan Bank in Sari as its case study and extracted the users' preferences using the Kansei method in order to find physical patterns for designing facade openings based on scientific analysis of the data obtained. The researcher examined the dominant emotional preferences using the Kansei engineering method and had 200 individuals selected from the sample population fill out a questionnaire that was scored using Semantic Differential (SD) and based on a 7-point Likert scale. The data obtained were analyzed in SPSS-16 using a test for mean and the Pearson correlation test.

Findings: The findings of the present study confirmed the significant relationship between the quantitative (the type of openings) and qualitative (Kansei terms) characteristics of design using the Kansei engineering method and also showed that arched openings, with attributes of religiosity such as “loyal”, “trustworthy” and “moderate” (with correlation values of 0.6, 0.6 and 0.63, in respective order), and rectangular openings with vertical elongation, with attributes of economics and banking such as “stability” (with the correlation value of 0.62), have obtained the highest degree of correlation.

Conclusion: Given the positive effects of physical patterns, and as traditional arched openings imply attributes such as religiosity while rectangular openings with vertical elongation imply positive economics and banking attributes, these openings were deemed suitable for designing the facade of the examined branch of Maskan Bank in Sari.

Introduction: The introduction of a thematic framework is necessary for the field of ergonomics and human factors. Content analysis is a useful tool for the trend analysis and distribution of published articles however, reports on the content analysis of ergonomics journals are rare. The present study was conducted to identify research trends in the journal of Human Factors through a content analysis of its recent articles published over the past ten years (2005-2014).

Materials and Methods: The present study used the directed content analysis method. Two analysis experts classified 741 articles based on their thematic codes. A conceptual framework was used to perform the content analysis. EXCEL 2007 and SPSS-19 were used for the data preparation, theme distribution and trend analysis of the published themes.

Results: From the total of 21 themes extracted, six themes defined over 50% of the variance in the published articles, including “Biomechanics, Anthropometry and Work Physiology", "Display and Control Design", "Surface Transportation Systems", "Cognitive Processes", "Attentional Processes" and "Sensory, Perceptual and Psychomotor Processes". The journal had a special focus on "Biomechanics, Anthropometry and Work Physiology" (about 12%). 

Conclusion: The thematic framework and distribution pattern noticed in this study can be used for planning education and research on human factors and ergonomics in universities, research centers and related organizations.

Introduction: Unsuitable and nonstandard tools, insufficient lighting and the lack of adequate rest in carpet weavers leads to an increased prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in this group of workers that needs to be reduced through the better supervision of carpet weaving workshops.

Materials and Methods: The present descriptive cross-sectional analysis was conducted in rural carpet weaving workshops of Takab, Iran. A total of 86 carpet weaving workshops were selected through cluster sampling, which employed 222 carpet weavers overall. The general and local lighting was measured in the workshops by a photometer (LX-13 model) and the workers' musculoskeletal disorders were assessed using the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire.

Findings: The results of the study reveal back disorders to have been the most (61.3%) and elbow disorder the least (7.2%) frequent among carpet weavers. The majority of the workshops had a general lighting (82.4% of the workshops) and local lighting (91.9% of the workshops) below the recommended limits.

Conclusion: The extended involvement of the upper limbs in carpet-weaving increases the prevalence of disorders in these organs. The results indicate that the majority of carpet weavers worked in workshops with non-standard lighting. The variables that were most effective in the development of neck and back disorders were the workers' years of work experience and the general lighting at their workplace while the variable that was most effective in the development of wrist and shoulder disorders was the workers' years of work experience only.

Introduction: As a healthcare providing establishment, hospitals can be affected by sources of noise pollution which then impose negative effects on the health and comfort of patients and personnel. The present study was conducted to determine the relationship between sound annoyance and general health in the personnel of university affiliated and non-university affiliated hospitals in Shiraz.

Materials and Methods: The present descriptive analytical study was conducted in four university affiliated and non-university affiliated hospitals in Shiraz with a sample size of 300 using a predetermined equation and according to the results of previous studies. The instruments used in the study included the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), the Noise Annoyance Scale (NAS) and an audiometer (CEL-440 model).

Findings: The present study found a small inverse relationship between the total general health score in the hospital personnel and the sound pressure level at university-affiliated hospitals (r=-0.103) and a direct positive relationship at non-university affiliated hospitals (r=0.274), which were not statistically significant (P≤0.05). The relationship of somatic symptoms, anxiety, insomnia, social dysfunction and depression to sound pressure was inverse and small (r=-0.195 and P≥0.05). However, there was a direct positive relationship between general health and sound annoyance (r=0.266 and P≤0.05).Conclusion: According to the results obtained, noise levels are higher than the acceptable exposure limit in university-affiliated hospitals, which affect both the patients' and the personnel's general health, necessitating the adoption of control measures.

Introduction: The weak design of hand tools and their disharmony with the user's physical features comprise a major risk factor for upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. Hand-tool related injuries comprise almost 9% of all work-related injuries. The present study was conducted to examine the effect of hand tools' diameter on comfort and maximum hand torque and to estimate the optimal diameter for hand tools.

Methods: Participants included 6 men and 6 women with a mean age of 24.7 and a standard deviation of age of 5.84 years. Participants started to load and rotate the grip of 7 hand tools with different diameters with all their power and using a self-made tool for measuring the torque. The test duration, maximum torque and comfort level of the tool grip was then measured and the data obtained were analyzed using the ANOVA and the t-test.

Findings: The mean maximum torque value obtained was 1.88 (SD=0.95) newton meter, the time taken to reach the maximum torque was 13.96 (SD=9.03) seconds and the mean comfort level was 3.27 (SD=1.48) at a scale from 1 to 7. There was a significant difference between the maximum torque generated in the group of men and the group of women (p<0.001). The mean maximum torque obtained was 3.034 newton meter and the mean maximum comfort level was 4.67, achieved with a grip diameter of 38 mm.

Conclusion: The optimal hand tool diameter recommended for maximum user comfort and torque is 38 mm.

Introduction: Despite the introduction and development of agricultural mechanization in the dairy farm sector of Iran, many tasks are still performed by manual labor in the country’ dairy farms, including milking, and necessitate poor body postures and movements that help increase the risk of musculoskeletal disorders among hand milking workers.

Material and Methods: The present study was conducted to assess the postural workload of workers during hand milking in the dairy farms of Ramin Agriculture and Natural Resources University and Ramhormoz county. Three milking techniques were assessed, including traditional hand milking, milking stanchion (mobile milking unit) and tandem parlor milking (the double-3 tandem). The postural workloads of 34 male milking workers were evaluated through mixed-methods.

Results: The results obtained showed that hand and stanchion milking require major parts of the body to be in a bent position over 70% of the time due to the operations taking place at a low height from the ground. In contrast, tandem milking required the body to be in a straight position over 90% of the time due to the operations taking place at a substantial height from the ground. Moreover, in terms of finger posture, all three techniques required the workers’ five fingers to be wrapped around different milking tools and parts of the cattle throughout the processes.

Conclusion: Being bent for long periods of time during the process of hand and stanchion milking and standing upright for long periods during tandem milking both caused musculoskeletal disorders of the back and backache for workers of both traditional and mechanized milking. In the case of the finger posture, prolonged repetitive finger postures decrease for milking workers with the increased mechanization of milking.

Introduction: As workplaces, hospitals are filled with stressors, including environmental and physical stressors (such as noise pollution and poor lighting), human stressors (such as conflicts with colleagues) and organizational stressors (such as heavy workloads and unsuitable work shifts). The inability to cope with these stressors entails physical, psychological and behavioral outcomes for the employees. The present study was conducted to evaluate job stress in nursing personnel and to design a model for assessing the severity of musculoskeletal disorders caused by job stress among nurses.

Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional analytical study was conducted on 500 nurses working in various teaching hospitals of Hamadan. Data were collected through four questionnaires, including the Job Content Questionnaire, Maslach’s Burnout Inventory, the Visual Analogue Scale and a Demographic Questionnaire. Data were then analyzed in SPSS-16 and LISREL-8.3 using descriptive statistics.

Results: The results of the structural equation modeling showed that job burnout has a mediating effect between the severity of musculoskeletal disorders and job stress. In other words, if factors contributing to job burnout are present, the psychosocial risk factors yielded by the Job Content Questionnaire then contribute to the severity of musculoskeletal disorders.

Conclusion: Given the negative effects of job stress among nurses, health decision-makers are recommended to take measures to reduce stressors such as the physical and psychological demands of the workplace, the lack of support and the lack of job security.

Background: Power and pinch hand grip strengths are major clinical and ergonomic parameters contributing to the hand muscle power. The data on hand grip strength measurements can have many benefits, including application in the design of hand tools. The present study was conducted to measure power hand grip strength among male and female students aged 19 to 36 using a Jamar Dynamometer and to compare their measurement data with the data obtained from other groups of the population.

Materials and Methods: The present cross sectional study was conducted on 234 male and female students aged 19-36 in Urmia University of Medical Sciences. Hand grip strength was measured using Jamar hand dynamometer and according to the Southampton protocol for adult grip strength measurement.

Results: The mean (±standard deviation of) hand grip strength calculated was 44.39 (±9.71) in the male students 20.48 (±5.86) in the female students. A high correlation was observed between the power hand grip strength in the left and right hands (r=0.94 and P<0.001) and a significant difference then between the power hand grip strength in the dominant and non-dominant hands. 

Conclusion: The findings of the present study and similar studies about power hand grip strength in the Iranian population can be used by ergonomists and manufacturers to improve the design of hand tools and the performance of tasks requiring hand muscle power.

Background: Driver’s fatigue is a major factor contributing to the prevalence of road accidents. A vast number of city dwellers in most countries use public transport bus services to move around the city. Driver’s fatigue causes job burnout and affects the risk of a traffic accident injuring the public. Several methods have been used to date for evaluating mental fatigue however, using questionnaires tends to be a less time-consuming and more accessible technique. The present study was therefore conducted to develop a mental fatigue questionnaire for public transport bus drivers.

Materials and Methods: The study was conducted based on the criteria used for qualitative research. Semi-structured interviews were held with public transport bus drivers using probing questions and data were collected until their saturation so as to enable access to a direct description of mental fatigue by the bus drivers. Data saturation occurred with 30 interviews and sampling was then discontinued. The analysis of the interviews led to the extraction of the themes and an initial list of questionnaire items was then developed. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were then evaluated through examining the content validity and internal consistency of the items. The content validity of the items was calculated using Lawshe’s table. A minimum CVR of 0.99 and a minimum CVI of 0.75 denoted an acceptable content validity for the items. To determine the internal consistency of the items, 200 bus drivers completed the final version of the questionnaire. The data obtained were then analyzed in SPSS-16 using Cronbach's alpha to measure the reliability of the questionnaire and considering an acceptance level of 0.7.

Results: The interviews conducted at the beginning of the study with 30 drivers led to the emergence of an initial list with 26 items. A total of 9 items with a CVR less than 0.99 were omitted from the list and 17 items with adequate simplicity, clarity and correlation between them and which had a minimum CVI of 0.75 were kept. The questionnaire had a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.87 and was therefore considered a reliable tool.

Conclusion: The questionnaire developed in this study has a good validity and reliability and can therefore be used to assess mental fatigue in public transport bus drivers.

Introduction: There is a dearth of information available on psychological job demands and control in the job (decision latitude) and their relationship with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) among Iranian nurses. The present study was conducted to investigate psychological job demands and control in the job and their relationship with the prevalence of MSD symptoms among nurses in hospitals affiliated with Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS). 

Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 385 nurses at SUMS hospitals selected through systematic random sampling. Data were collected using the Persian version of the Job Content Questionnaire (P-JCQ), the standardized Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) and a demographic questionnaire. The data obtained were then analyzed in SPSS-11.5 using descriptive statistics and logistic regression.

Results: The mean (SD) of the different dimensions of psychological job demands and control in the job were calculated as 38.19 (5.14) and 58.15 (6.50). The results revealed psychological job demands to be high and control in the job to be low. A total of 29.1% of the nurses suffered from a high job strain (a high demand and low control). Regression modeling showed that the chance of suffering from lower extremity disorders among the nurses placed in the cells indicating a high job strain cell was 2.35 times higher than those placed in the cells indicating a low job strain.

Conclusion: The demand-control model placed the majority of the nurses in the cells indicating a high job strain. Any interventional program designed for preventing MSDs among nurses should focus on increasing their control and changing their job conditions from a high strain condition to a low strain or active one.

Introduction: Water and paraffin are well-known phase change materials used in the manufacturing of cooling vests. The present study was conducted to design and make a cooling vest using commercial paraffin compounds and ice and to then examine their effect on thermal strain parameters in hot climate conditions in a climate chamber.

Materials and Methods: A cooling vest was first made with polyester fabric and containing 17 aluminum packs. Each aluminum pack was filled with 72 g of water and 65 g of prepared paraffin. A total of 10 male students then performed a treadmill exercise in hot climate conditions in a climate chamber (ambient temperature (TA) = 40 ⁰C and relative humidity (RH) = 40%) once with and once without wearing the cooling vest and at two levels of exercise intensity, including a light intensity (2.8 kph) and a moderate intensity (4.8 kph) exercise. Each stage of the experiment involved 30 minutes of rest and 30 minutes of exercise on the treadmill. Participants’ heart rate, oral and skin temperature and sweat rate were measured throughout the study.

Result: The latent heat of the prepared paraffin was 108 kJ/kg and the peak melting point was 30 °C. Significant differences were observed between participants’ mean heart rate, oral and skin temperature and sweat rate at both exercise intensities and both with and without the cooling vest (P<0.05).

Conclusion: The use of a cooling vest containing paraffin and ice can reduce thermal strain through reducing the heart rate, oral and skin temperature and sweat rate.

Introduction: Job burnout can have negative effects on organizations and their employees. This study tried to investigate the relationships between job burnout and occupational stress, the four dimensions of organizational justice, personality characteristics, role clarity, and role overload.

Material and Methods: All full-time employees of the Regional Electric Company of Kerman (n = 200) were selected as the study sample. Finally, 138 usable questionnaires were collected. Previously designed questionnaires were used to measure work overload, occupational stress, role calrity, and organizational justice and respect. Maslach Burnout Inventory and NEO were also administered. Pearson’s correlation and multiple regression analyses were applied to analyze the data. All analyses were performed using SPSS 16.0.

Results: Job burnout was significantly related with occupational stress, distributive justice, extraversion, role clarity, role overload, organizational respect. Multiple regression analysis suggested distributive justice, overload, procedural justice, and occupational stress as the best predictors of job burnout. These factors explained 48% of the variance in burnout.

Conclusion: According to the results of this study, policymakers and planners of the organization are recommended to pay more attention to parameters contributing to job burnout. This will prevent job burnout among the personnel and promote organizational efficiency.

Introduction: Faculty and staff are the pillars of any university. Any impairment in the function of these elements would undoubtedly decrease the quality of education and training services provided. The present study aimed to assess the relationship between subjective workload and job satisfaction in faculty and staff members of universities of medical sciences and universities affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology.

Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytical study recruited 164 faculty and staff members. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, NASA Task Load Index (NASA TLX), and the Job Description Index (JDI). One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to analyze the data.

Findings: The participants’ workload had no significant effects on their job satisfaction. Faculty members generally had a heavier workload and lower level of job satisfaction compared to staff members. Moreover, faculty of universities of medical sciences had higher workload and lower levels of job satisfaction (14.5% vs. 30.76%) in comparison to faculty of universities affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology. Moreover, 14.5% of the medical faculty members and 30.76% of science faculty members were satisfied with their jobs. Overall, job satisfaction and workload were not significantly related with demographic characteristics and job features of the participants.

Conclusion: Among the various subscales of workload, faculty members reported high levels of subjective pressure, time pressure, and effort. Therefore, further studies are required to identify the causes of such pressures and introduce measures for their reduction or elimination.

Introduction: Listening to music during physical activity reduces the perceived stress on body. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of music genre and sound pressure level on calorie consumption and physical performance of students during treadmill tests.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 27 students were randomly selected. A demographic questionnaire, Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale (RPE 6-20), and the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q) were used for data collection. During flat and sloped treadmill running (five minutes at 6 km/hour), two pieces of music with fast and slow tempo (200 and 70 beat per minute) were also played at two sound pressure levels (60 and 80 dB). During the exercise, the students’ heart rate and calorie consumption were measured by a calorimeter (Beurer PM100). At each stage, the physical performance of the participants was estimated using the relevant equation.

Results: The students had the lowest physical performance (61.48) when no music was played and the highest physical performance (92.48) with slow, loud music. The mean heart rate, calorie consumption, and perceived exertion were maximized without music and minimized when slow, loud music was played.

Conclusion: Playing soft music at high sound pressure levels can promote physical performance during exercise by decreasing heart rate, calorie consumption, and perceived exertion.

Introduction: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are among the major causes of work-related disability in healthcare workers (HCW). One of the main causes of WDSDs is patient handling. This study aimed to identify hazardous conditions related to patient handling in hospital environments.

Material and Methods: Patient handling activities were evaluated in 23 wards of three hospitals in Shiraz, Iran. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the required data through interviews with at least 23 HCW. Number of patient transfers per shift, patients’ ability to move to/from bed/stretcher, type and rate of personnel injuries, and necessity of transfer assist devices were surveyed.

Results: Over five manual patient transfers per shift were performed in 70% of the wards. More than 70% of the patients were completely or relatively unable to cooperate in their own transfer. In more than 80% of the wards, the staff involved in patient handling activities suffered from various WMSDs, mainly low back pain (48.78%). Almost all (95%) participants believed that transfer assist devices were necessary and helpful and could be beneficial to not only the patients, but also the HCW and the hospital.

Conclusion: Patients in most hospital wards need help when moving to/from bed/stretcher. Patient handling is generally performed manually by HCW. The high prevalence rate of WMSDs in the participating HCW highlighted the necessity of an ergonomic intervention, e.g. the use of transfer assist devices, for patient handling.

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the effects of cooling vests on heat strain and reaction time while wearing protective clothing against chemical, biological, and radioactive contamination.

Materials and Methods: Twelve male students with the mean age of 25 ± 2 years and mean body mass index (BMI) of 23.0 ± 1.5 kg/m2 were recruited in this experiment. Each student was asked to run on a treadmill at a speed of 2.4 km/h for 20 minutes. The experiments were performed at 35 °C and 30% relative humidity. Physiological strain index score, oral temperature, heart rate, reaction time, and number of errors were measured at the end of the two phases. The findings were analyzed by SPSS.

Results: According to Wilcoxon test, exercising with and without the cooling vest resulted in significantly different physiological strain index scores (P = 0.02), oral temperature (P = 0.02), reaction time (P = 0.02), heart rate (P = 0.02), and errors (P = 0.03). The mean physiological strain index score was 4.038 ± 0.882 without the cooling vest and 1.42 ± 0.435 with the cooling vest. The mean reaction times with and without the cooling vest were 0.539 ± 0.977 and 0.769 ± 0.0972, respectively.

Conclusion: The results of this study showed that using a cooling vest reduced the physiological strain, reaction time, and error rates in workers.

Introduction: Understanding the physical capacity of people in different weather conditions can facilitate the assignment of right jobs to right individuals. People’s physical work capacity can change in response to weather conditions. Since military forces are usually obliged to work under different weather conditions, this study aimed to assess these individuals’ physical work capacity in desired, warm-humid, and very warm-humid weather conditions.

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 36 military men (age: 20-29 years). Astrand treadmill tests were used to measure the participants’ physical work capacity, maximum aerobic capacity, and maximum oxygen uptake were measured under three weather conditions (desired, warm-humid, and very warm-humid).

Results: The mean physical work capacity of the participants in desired, warm-humid, and very warm-humid weather conditions was 3.69 ± 0.52, 3.69 ± 0.55, and 3.41 ± 0.50 Kcal/min, respectively. The participants’ maximum physical capacity under the mentioned conditions was 10.87 ± 1.54, 10.84 ± 1.63, and 10.02 ± 10.48 Kcal/min, respectively. Maximum aerobic capacity of the subjects was 29.52 ± 2.52, 29.76 ± 2.65, and 28.14 ± 2.76 ml/kg/min, respectively.

Conclusion: According to our findings, people have similar physical work capacity under desired and warm-humid weather conditions. However, physical work capacity reduced in very warm-humid weather. Moreover, the participants were allowed to perform light-moderate work during a work shift.

Introduction: Physical activity has been identified as a potential intervention to improve body composition in women with breast cancer. This research sought to investigate the effects of an eight-week aerobic training program on some anthropometric indices and cardiorespiratory fitness of middle-aged women with breast cancer.

Material and Methods: A total of 15 women with breast cancer (age: 40-60 years) were selected through convenience sampling. They attended an eight-week aerobic exercise program consisting of three 40-60-minute sessions per week. Exercise intensity was maintained at 30%-60% the subjects’ heart rate reserve (HRR). The participants’ weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), waist to hip ratio, waist to height ratio (WHR), body fat percentage (BFP), and maximum oxygen consumption were measured at baseline and after eight weeks of exercise. Data were analyzed by paired samples t-tests at a significance level of 0.05.

Results: Significant reductions in the patients’ weight (P = 0.001), BMI (P = 0.001), WC (P = 0.006), HC (P = 0.001), WHR (P = 0.006), and PBF (P = 0.001) were observed after eight weeks of aerobic training. Moreover, exercise significantly increased the subjects’ maximum oxygen consumption (P = 0.008). However, changes in the participants’ waist to hip ratio were not significant (P = 0.235).

Conclusion: According to the obtained results, an eight-week aerobic training program could significantly improve some anthropometric indices and cardiorespiratory fitness in women with breast cancer.

Introduction: Improving the quality of work life requires a certain organizational culture that supports creativity, autonomy, accountability, and employee participation. The present study investigated the relationship between organizational culture and employees’ quality of work life.

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional and correlational study was conducted in 2015. A total of 145 staff members of all deputies of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences were selected. Organizational culture and quality of work life were measured using previously designed self-administered questionnaires. Items of the questionnaires were scared on a Likert scale. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to analyze the data. All analyses were performed by SPSS.

Results: A moderate level of organizational culture was detected in this study (mean score = 3.04). Organizational culture and its components had significant positive correlations with quality of work life (r = 0.64; P = 0.001). Linear regression analysis confirmed the significant positive effects of organizational culture on quality of work life.

Conclusion: Based on the findings of the present study, modification of organizational culture and its components is necessary for improving personnel’s quality of work life, job satisfaction, and participation. Development of appropriate organizational culture can ensure higher quality of work life among university staff and enhance the quality and productivity of academic services.