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PubMed2006

Work design and management in the manufacturing sector: development and validation of the Work Organisation Assessment Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the factor structure, reliability, and validity of a new context-specific questionnaire for the assessment of work and organisational factors. The Work Organisation Assessment Questionnaire (WOAQ) was developed as part of a risk assessment and risk reduction methodology for hazards inherent in the design and management of work in the manufacturing sector. METHOD: Two studies were conducted. Data were collected from 524 white- and blue-collar employees from a range of manufacturing companies. Exploratory factor analysis was carried out on 28 items that described the most commonly reported failures of work design and management in companies in the manufacturing sector. Concurrent validity data were also collected. A reliability study was conducted with a further 156 employees. RESULTS: Principal component analysis, with varimax rotation, revealed a strong 28-item, five factor structure. The factors were named: quality of relationships with management, reward and recognition, workload, quality of relationships with colleagues, and quality of physical environment. Analyses also revealed a more general summative factor. Results indicated that the questionnaire has good internal consistency and test-retest reliability and validity. Being associated with poor employee health and changes in health related behaviour, the WOAQ factors are possible hazards. It is argued that the strength of those associations offers some estimation of risk. Feedback from the organisations involved indicated that the WOAQ was easy to use and meaningful for them as part of their risk assessment procedures. CONCLUSIONS: The studies reported here describe a model of the hazards to employee health and health related behaviour inherent in the design and management of work in the manufacturing sector. It offers an instrument for their assessment. The scales derived which form the WOAQ were shown to be reliable, valid, and meaningful to the user population.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Coping with unfair treatment at work--what is the relationship between coping and hypertension in middle-aged men and Women? An epidemiological study of working men and women in Stockholm (the WOLF study).

BACKGROUND: An important hypothesis in psychosomatic medicine is that exposure to psychosocial factors that arouse anger may accelerate the onset of hypertension, particularly if the subject is not allowed to show anger or to deal constructively with the factor that evoked it. For working men and women, being treated in an unfair way at work may be crucial. The present study was designed to answer the question whether the pattern of coping - primarily directed towards the aggressor (open) or directed inwards or towards others (covert) - is associated with hypertension among working men and women. STUDY GROUP: Five thousand seven hundred and twenty working men and women aged 15-64 participated in the study. The participation rate was 76%. METHODS: The coping pattern was studied by means of a Swedish version of a self-administered questionnaire that was originally introduced by Harburg et al. RESULTS: Significant results were confined to the age group 45-54. All analyses were adjusted for age and body mass index. Smoking habits and social class had no effect on the relationships. Low scores (lowest quartile) for open coping tended to be associated with an elevated prevalence ratio (PR) of hypertension both among men (PR 1.3, 95% confidence interval, CI, 0.9-1.7) and women (PR 1.4, 95% CI 1.0-2.0). High scores for covert coping (highest quartile) were associated with an elevated PR of hypertension among men (PR 1.6, 95% CI 1.2-2.2) but not in women. If the analysis was confined to cases without medication, the relationship between a high level of covert coping and high blood pressure was still significant for men. For women, however, no significant findings were made after this operation. Accordingly, the relationship between a low level of open coping and hypertension in women was confined to women with medication. Coping patterns were correlated with psychosocial work environment factors, in particular decision latitude. CONCLUSION: In men, covert coping was associated with prevalence of hypertension. In women, there tended to be a relationship between low scores for open coping and hypertension.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2006

ALIFE@Work: a randomised controlled trial of a distance counselling lifestyle programme for weight control among an overweight working population [ISRCTN04265725].

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of overweight is increasing and its consequences will cause a major public health burden in the near future. Cost-effective interventions for weight control among the general population are therefore needed. The ALIFE@Work study is investigating a novel lifestyle intervention, aimed at the working population, with individual counselling through either phone or e-mail. This article describes the design of the study and the participant flow up to and including randomisation. METHODS/DESIGN: ALIFE@Work is a controlled trial, with randomisation to three arms: a control group, a phone based intervention group and an internet based intervention group. The intervention takes six months and is based on a cognitive behavioural approach, addressing physical activity and diet. It consists of 10 lessons with feedback from a personal counsellor, either by phone or e-mail, between each lesson. Lessons contain educational content combined with behaviour change strategies. Assignments in each lesson teach the participant to apply these strategies to every day life. The study population consists of employees from seven Dutch companies. The most important inclusion criteria are having a body mass index (BMI) > or = 25 kg/m2 and being an employed adult. Primary outcomes of the study are body weight and BMI, diet and physical activity. Other outcomes are: perceived health; empowerment; stage of change and self-efficacy concerning weight control, physical activity and eating habits; work performance/productivity; waist circumference, sum of skin folds, blood pressure, total blood cholesterol level and aerobic fitness. A cost-utility- and a cost-effectiveness analysis will be performed as well. Physiological outcomes are measured at baseline and after six and 24 months. Other outcomes are measured by questionnaire at baseline and after six, 12, 18 and 24 months. Statistical analyses for short term (six month) results are performed with multiple linear regression. Analyses for long term (two year) results are performed with multiple longitudinal regression. Analyses for cost-effectiveness and cost-utility are done at one and two years, using bootstrapping techniques. DISCUSSION: ALIFE@Work will make a substantial contribution to the development of cost-effective weight control- and lifestyle interventions that are applicable to and attractive for the large population at risk.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Excessive daytime sleepiness at work and subjective work performance in the general population and among heavy snorers and patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) at work and effects on reported work performance among men in the general population and male patients suffering from snoring and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: A cross-sectional study of Swedish men between the ages of 30 and 64 years in the county of Kopparberg, in mid-Sweden. A random sample of the general population (n = 285) and consecutive patients referred to a sleep laboratory who fulfilled objective diagnostic criteria (snorers = 289, OSAS = 62) responded to a questionnaire. Responders from the general population were divided into 2 groups, nonsnorers (n = 223) and snorers (n = 62). To validate a question on snoring in the questionnaire, 50 men, randomly selected from the sample of the general population, underwent sleep apnea screening in their homes. RESULTS: The specificity of the questions about snoring was 83% and the sensitivity was 42%. The risk ratios for reporting EDS at work were 4-fold for snorers in the general population, 20-fold for snoring patients, and 40-fold for patients with OSAS as compared with nonsnoring men in the general population. Patients with OSAS and snoring patients both showed increased ratios on measures of difficulties with concentration, learning new tasks, and performing monotonous tasks when compared with nonsnorers. CONCLUSION: Snoring and sleep apnea were highly associated with excessive EDS at work and subjective work performance problems. The results provide additional evidence that snoring is not merely a nuisance.

Adult↗

PubMed1976

[Work load due to stamping task as a simple repetitive hand work (author's transl)].

An experimental study was carried out on stamping task using no conveyers with short work cycle which was taken as featuring simple repetitive hand work. Each phase of this work was allowed to each subject. Seventeen healthy adults, 8 males and 9 females, were engaged in the 120 minutes, stamping task. They were tested by their function of concentration maintenance (TAF), by flicker frequency and 30 items of subjective symptoms as advocated by the Japan Association of Industrial Health. Quantities of work for each 10 minutes were calculated. The results obtained were as follows: 1) Number of stamped cards by male subjects was more than that by female subjects. 2) Pace of work performance in the female subjects was being kept more in balance with their capacity in comparison with the male subjects. 3) The results of TAF and FF tests showed that the body load in the male subjects were greater than in the female subjects.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Identifying work preferences among individuals with severe multiple disabilities prior to beginning supported work.

We evaluated a prework assessment for predicting work-task preferences among workers with severe multiple disabilities prior to beginning supported work. The assessment involved comparing worker selections from pairs of work tasks drawn from their future job duties. Results of workers' choices once they began their jobs in a publishing company indicated that the assessment predicted tasks that the workers preferred to work on during their job routines. Results are discussed regarding other possible means of determining preferred types of supported work.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Perceived risk of occupational injury: control over pace of work and blue-collar versus white-collar work.

Factors influencing the perception of risk of work-related accidental injury were investigated for 244 full-time employed men and women. Autonomy and freedom in one's work were the strongest predictors of perceived risk, with those respondents exercising the greatest control over their work perceiving the least risk of accidental injury. Two other dimensions of control over work-task repetitiveness and speed of pace-had weaker effects. Respondents using primarily blue collar kinds of equipment felt more at risk than those using white collar equipment or no equipment. This result is interpreted in terms of the impact of 'sudden harm' on perceptions. Present working conditions, represented by the number of hazards identified in the workplace, predicted perceived risk more strongly than previous accident history.

Accidents, Occupational↗

PubMed1995

Dental care works and work-related complaints of dentists.

To clarify the relationship between daily performed dental practices and work-related physical complaints by dentists, we examined 16 male dentists who worked at their clinic in an urban district. Each subject answered a questionnaire concerning work-related complaints and was examined by a time study of daily actions. The electromyograms of back muscles were taken from ten different positions. Approximately 62% of the daily practice was occupied by the dental care work. The dental care postures were classified into 3 types according to the inclination of the body. The most common posture was a right-forward position. The prevalence of complaints including problems with eyes, hands and arms, neck and shoulders and low back differed among 3 types. The order of complaints was neck and shoulders, eyes, and low back. The amplitude of the electromyograms was increased by the extension of the muscles to lateral bending of 30 degrees and internal rotation of 15 degrees. These results suggest that the body positions of daily dental care practices cause an increase in work-related complaints in dentists.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The Culture-Work-Health model and work stress.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the role of organizational culture in the etiology of workplace stress through the framework of the Culture-Work-Health model. METHODS: A review of the business and health literature related to organizational culture was conducted and applied to the model. RESULTS: Culture is an important component of work stress and may be a key to creating effective organizational stress interventions. CONCLUSION: Work stress is as much a managerial and business concern as a health concern when it is framed in a cultural argument, and the Culture-Work-Health model provides a theoretical basis for new directions in ameliorating work stress.

Decision Making, Organizational↗

PubMed2001

The work-related fatal injury study: numbers, rates and trends of work-related fatal injuries in New Zealand 1985-1994.

AIMS: To determine the number and rates of work-related fatal injuries by employment status, occupation, industry, age and gender in New Zealand 1985-1994. METHODS: Potential cases of work-related injury deaths of persons aged 15-84 years were identified from the national electronic mortality data files. Main exclusions were deaths due to suicide and deaths due to motor vehicle crashes. The circumstances of the deaths of each fatal incident meeting inclusion criteria were then reviewed directly from coronial files to determine work-relatedness. RESULTS: The rate of work-related fatal injury in New Zealand was 5.03/100000 workers per year for the study period. There was a significant decline in crude rate over the study period. However, this was in substantial part accounted for by changes in occupation and industry mix. Older workers, male workers, self-employed workers, and particular occupational groups, all had substantially elevated rates. Agricultural and helicopter pilots, forestry workers and fishery workers had the highest rates. Farmers, forestry workers, and fishery workers also had high numbers of deaths, together accounting for nearly 40% of all deaths. CONCLUSIONS: This study has demonstrated that work-related fatal injury remains a pressing problem for New Zealand. Several areas in urgent need of prevention efforts were highlighted.

Accidents, Occupational↗

PubMed2001

Work and sleep hours of U.S. Army aviation personnel working reverse cycle.

A one-page questionnaire was administered to 157 aviation personnel from three Army posts to determine when Army aviation personnel work and sleep while on reverse cycle. This project was undertaken as a first step to developing tailor-made fatigue reduction strategies for shift workers in Army aviation. The results indicated that 97.6% of the surveyed aviation personnel had experience working night shift/reverse cycle at some point in their careers, with 69.4% working the night shift within the past 6 months. Of those who had experience working the night shift, 36.2% reported usually working from early in the afternoon to early in the morning, with 52.2% of personnel returning home by 4:00 a.m.; however, 28.3% arrived home after 8:00 a.m. Almost 62% of the respondents indicated that they did not feel they received adequate daytime sleep some of the time or at all while on reverse cycle/night shift. Research is needed to address the issue of helping aviation personnel sleep during the daylight hours, both for training exercises and for deployment. Once the work/rest schedule for a unit is known, countermeasures such as light therapy or gradual changes in scheduling can be tailored to meet the specific needs of the individual or unit.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Why do workers behave unsafely at work? Determinants of safe work practices in industrial workers.

AIMS: To explore the relation between safety climate (workers' perceptions regarding management's attitudes towards occupational safety and health) and workers' behaviour at work. METHODS: Cross sectional survey of workers at the pottery industry in Castellon, Spain. Sampling was stratified by plant size and workers' gender, according to data on the working population at this setting. A total of 734 production workers were interviewed. Information was collected on safety climate and workers' behaviour towards occupational risks with a specific questionnaire. A safety climate index (SCI, scale 0-100) was constructed adding scores for each item measuring safety climate in the questionnaire. Workers' unsafe behaviour was analysed for the different safety climate index levels. RESULTS: Mean score for SCI was 71.90 (SD 19.19). There were no differences in SCI scores according to age, gender, education, children at charge, seniority at work, or type of employment. Small workplaces (<50 workers) showed significantly worse SCI (mean 67.23, SD 19.73) than the largest factories (>200 workers). Lower levels of SCI (SCI <50) were related to workers' unsafe behaviours (full/high accord with the statement "I excessively expose myself to hazards in my work", adjusted odds ratio ORa 2.79, 95% CI 1.60 to 4.88), and to lack of compliance with safety rules (ORa 12.83, 95% CI 5.92 to 27.80). CONCLUSIONS: Safety climate measures workers' perception of organisational factors related to occupational health and safety (for example, management commitment to risk prevention or priorities of safety versus production). In this study these factors are strongly associated with workers' attitudes towards safety at work. Longitudinal studies can further clarify the relation between safety climate and workers' behaviour regarding occupational safety and health.

Accidents, Occupational↗

PubMed2004

Processes of care for individuals with work related asthma: treatment characteristics and impact of asthma on work.

The prevalence of asthma among working adults continues to rise each year. The California Department of Health Services conducts surveillance of work related asthma (WRA) to classify each work related exposure using Doctor's First Reports of Occupational Illness and Injury (DFRs). Using a cross-sectional, descriptive, comparative design, additional interviews were conducted and medical records were reviewed to explore workers' and providers' perceptions of follow up care. Two cohorts were compared: workers with WRA who belonged to a large, single HMO (n = 79) and workers with WRA who underwent follow up outside this HMO (n = 76). The interview asked about providers seen, tests ordered, and the impact of asthma on work. The HMO clients were significantly more likely than the non-HMO clients to see occupational medicine specialists (p = .004) and have pulmonary function testing (p = .049) during initial treatment. Twenty-four percent of clients currently working reported missed workdays caused by asthma in the past 6 months. The findings indicate management of WRA varies by health care system in California.

Absenteeism↗

PubMed1992

[The working alliance is St. Stephan's cathedral. Epistemological considerations of the Heinrich Deserno lecture, "Analysis and the working alliance" (1990)].

With the term "working alliance", as it was discussed by R.R. Greenson in noted publications, an understanding of work was introduced that corresponds with the dominant contemporary idea of work as a purely instrumental and technical process which is alien to the original "spirit" of Freudian Analysis. The author shows that psychological work, which in analysis is carried out cooperatively by analyst and analysand, needs transference to be successful, a transference with the help of which the analysand is able to discuss and specify his unconscious psychological conflicts. In Greenson's understanding the working alliance--supposedly neurosis-free--appeals to the rational part of the ego and introduces a normative understanding of reality. The transference relationship, by contrast, gives room to those psychic forces which refuse to obey the authority of the ego and its tendencies to conventionalize and suppress unconscious material.

Humans↗

PubMed2005

Effectiveness of measures and implementation strategies in reducing physical work demands due to manual handling at work.

This review aimed at producing insight into the effectiveness of interventions to reduce the physical work demands associated with manual (materials) handling in the work situation and musculoskeletal symptoms in the longer-term. A systematic electronic literature search between 1990 and February 2003 was performed in the following databases: Embase, Medline, HSE-line, Nioshtic, and Nioshtic-2. Three inclusion criteria were applied, and altogether 44 studies were included for review. The interventions were divided into two categories, (ergonomic) measures and implementation strategies. One randomized controlled field study was found that established a causal effect for a combination of implementation strategies in reducing the physical work demands associated with manual handling and reducing acute musculoskeletal symptoms. All four of the controlled field studies showed a significant reduction in the physical work demands when lifting devices were part of the intervention. Two of these studies measured a significant reduction in low-back disorders in the longer term. Several uncontrolled pre-post studies showed effects in the same direction. Of the 26 implementation strategies, 21 that measured an improvement in the process variables (eg, aimed behavioral variables) used a participatory ergonomics approach, an education (or training) program or both with the direct involvement of workers. It was concluded that significant reductions in physical work demands and musculoskeletal symptoms were found when (mechanical) lifting devices were part of the intervention. The higher quality studies that showed improvement in behavior indicate the importance of using facilitating and educational strategies in the implementation of ergonomic measures.

Humans↗

PubMed1990

[Study of work efficiency under high temperature environment and reasonable arrangement of work time].

The significant relationship of water loss rate (WLR) to air temperature and work intensity when people work in hot environment was developed in the field study 4000 g of water loss for a working day and 500 g for a working hour was used as the upper limitation for heat exposure, then the Allowable Continuous Heat Exposure Time (ACHET) and Total Heat Exposure Time (THET) were calculated at different air temperature and work intensity. In order to confirm the ACHET derived from field study, WLR and some other physiological examinations were done to the subjects in lab study. And the necessary rest time after each ACHET was also estimated by way of observing the recovery of physiological indexes of subjects.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

[Prophylactic measures at work sites in respect of the adaptation of working personnel].

The paper shows the importance and role played by medicine in the orientation and solving of the adaptation processes of the individual at the working site and in modern life, under the conditions of variability and complexity of industrial development. Correct knowledge of work and of efficiency achieved provides the elements of a complete appreciation of the workers' adaptation, with the possibility of improving those conditions on which the formation of the dynamic stereotype depends. The efficiency parallels the training, being influenced by the adaptation of the respiratory and cardiovascular functions, elimination of useless movements during the working process and increase of muscular strength. Lack of adaptation may be noticed by inadequate evolution of the indices mentioned and the appearance of general phenomena--fatigue, neuro-psychical disturbances etc. Observation of the unfavourable effects of the working conditions upon the body should lead to application of prophylactic measures concerning rhythm and regimen of work. The results obtained in the adaptability process, followed up in the inpatient medical unit are reported.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1979

Some determinants of work performance in foodservice systems. Job satisfaction and work values of school foodservice personnel.

Job performance, job satisfaction, and work orientation of 304 women foodservice employees in twenty-four schools in seven districts were examined. Work values and job satisfaction of school and hospital foodservice employees were also compared. Work values varied little between the two groups. The school employees, however, were more satisfied with their work, supervision, and co-workers than were the hospital employees. School employees were divided into high- and low-performance groups through supervisory ratings of six dimensions of performance. The high-performance group had significantly higher satisfaction scores than the low-performance group. The former group had been employed longer and worked more hours per day than the latter.

Attitude↗