Recent research has shown that the more time employees spend in their chairs, the more likely they are to develop serious health problems such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. The July special issue of Ergonomics in Design examines the health and safety effects of the sedentary workplace, the pros and cons of alternatives to sitting at work (for example, sit-stand and treadmill workstations, ball chairs), and proposed workplace design solutions. The full text of the issue, guest edited by Jack Dennerlein, is now available online and may be found at http://erg.sagepub.com/content/current .
"With the recent increase in attention to sedentary work and its effects on worker health, there has been a push to change the design of the workplace in order to provide opportunities to reduce the amount of time workers are sedentary," says Dennerlein. "These design changes need to be guided as best as they can by evidence-based and best practice approaches to protecting worker safety and health to ensure these changes actually improve well-being and performance."
The special issue contains these articles:
"The research presented in this special issue identifies key factors that can facilitate the success of new approaches to office design and discusses specific barriers and limitations that can inhibit this success," adds Dennerlein.
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To obtain copies of articles for media reporting purposes, contact HFES Communications Associate Cara Quinlan (310/394-1811; cara@hfes.org ) or Communications Director Lois Smith (310/394-1811; lois@hfes.org ).
The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society is the world's largest scientific association for human factors/ergonomics professionals, with more than 4,800 members globally. HFES members include psychologists and other scientists, designers, and engineers, all of whom have a common interest in designing systems and equipment to be safe and effective for the people who operate and maintain them. "Human Factors and Ergonomics: People-Friendly Design Through Science and Engineering"
Plan to attend the 2015 International Annual Meeting, to be held October 26-30 in Los Angeles.
Ergonomics in Design The Quarterly of Human Factors Applications