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The Effects of Short Break Time and Mouse Clicks on the VDT Work by using Subjective Discomfort  

Kim, Yu-Chang (Department of Industrial Management Engineering, Dong-Eui University)
Lee, Jun-Pal (Department of Industrial Management Engineering, Dong-Eui University)
Publication Information
Journal of the Korean Society of Safety / v.23, no.2, 2008 , pp. 30-36 More about this Journal
Abstract
This paper suggests the best work conditions, including short break time and number of mouse clicks on a computer, to prevent MSDs(Musculoskeletal Disorders) on VDT(Visual Display Terminal) work. Discomfort measures are calculated according to the Borg's CR-10 Scale. The short break time conditions are grouped into 7, 15, and 30 seconds after every 10-minute work period and the number of mouse clicks are divided into 10 clicks/min, 20clicks/min, and 30clicks/min. The result of the ANOVA on the shift value of subjective discomfort shows the following: 1) Regarding the break time and the number of mouse clicks, there are statistical differences between the measured values for the neck and the wrist(p<0.05). 2) Regarding the number of mouse clicks, there are statistical differences between the measured values for the shoulder and the forearm(p<0.1). 3) Regarding the break time and the number of mouse clicks, there are no statistical differences between the measures values for the eyes, upper arms and back(p<0.1).
Keywords
VDT; MSDs; short break time; the number of mouse clicks; subjective discomfort;
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