• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.34 no.6
• /
• pp.609-622
• /
• 2015

Objective: This study aims to investigate the correlation between office and work environment satisfaction levels and workers' musculoskeletal symptoms by conducting surveys asking office workers to state their musculoskeletal symptoms and office and work environment satisfaction levels. Background: The increased number of office workers and their indoor work hours using computers have led to new understandings of the importance of office environment including its temperature, humidity, noise levels, lighting and quality of air, and work environment including monitor arrangement, space arrangement and the functions of desks and chairs. Method: Specific details on office work, office environment satisfaction levels, work environment satisfaction levels, musculoskeletal symptoms, absence from work and treatment due to musculoskeletal related symptoms were analyzed based on the survey answers given by 397 office workers who were the subjects of this research. Results: Office workers showed different characteristics of musculoskeletal symptoms depending on their gender, age, work experience, office hours, break time and time spent on computers. Also, differences in symptoms were found for workers'with different satisfaction levels for office environment (temperature, humidity, noise levels, quality of air, lighting) and work environment (location of monitors, area and display of office space, chairs and desks). ANOVA shows the differences between groups of subjects classified by the experience of work-absences and treatments or pain complaints. Conclusion and Application: Relationship between workers' satisfaction levels with the office and work environment and their musculoskeletal symptoms is expected to be served as essential data for systematic management of the workplace.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.223-234
• /
• 2015

Objective:This study aims to investigate the correlation between office environment satisfaction levels and workers' subjective symptoms by conducting surveys asking office workers to state their subjective symptoms and office satisfaction levels. Background: The increased number of office workers and their work hours have led to new understandings of the importance of office environments including its temperature, humidity, noise levels, lighting, space arrangements, and quality of air. Method: Specific details on office work, office environment, office space satisfaction levels, workplace related symptoms, absence from work, due to workplace-related symptoms, were analyzed based on the survey answers given by 451 office workers who were the subjects of this research. Results: Office workers showed different characteristics of subjective symptoms depending on their gender, age, work experience, and time spent resting and on computers. Also, differences in symptoms were found for workers with different satisfaction levels for office environment (temperature, humidity, noise levels, quality of air, lighting) and office space arrangements (location of monitors, area and display of office space, chairs and desks). Conclusion and Application: Relationship between workers' satisfaction levels with the office environment and their subjective symptoms is expected to be serve as essential data for systematic management of the workplace.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.34 no.2
• /
• pp.135-143
• /
• 2015

Objective: The purposes of this study are to investigate ergonomic problems and to propose their improving measures in office environment of big general hospitals. Background: Office tasks have varying risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). The first symptom resulted from the office work was recognized as an occupational disease in Korea in 1986. Although the symptoms have increased since its first recognition, there has been few study on the effect of office work environment settings. Method: First, the author took pictures of working scenes performed in three big university hospitals. Next, the pictures were analyzed in view point of ergonomics. Based on the analysis, their improving measures were proposed for reducing work stress. Results: The results showed that most physical office environment settings such as dimensions of tables/desks and chairs, leg room, thigh, knee and foot clearances, and chairs used did not satisfy the ergonomically recommended design guidelines. In addition, some clerks placed personal belongings under their desks, put monitors in high position and did not lean against the backrest of chairs in seated tasks, which resulted in poor working postures of leg, back, neck etc. It is recommended that the hospital management should provide their clerks with ergonomically designed office furniture and continuously perform ergonomics training program for raising clerks' recognition for office ergonomics. Conclusion: Most office environment settings investigated in this study were not in good condition in view point of ergonomic design for the settings. Application: It would be useful as basic data for establishing ergonomically good office environment in hospitals.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
• /
• no.7
• /
• pp.3-11
• /
• 1996

This study intents to provide useful information of effective office works by evaluating existing office work environment. It focuses on evaluating the quality of personal and common work spaces, comparing responses for user groups to their work environment, and identifying factors which affect the satisfaction of work environment . The study is based on the survey which has been answered by 193 respondents from 24 companies (mainly from large corporate companies) in Seoul. This study finds out that noise is the most serious problem in common work space and that environmental comfort and the size of common space are not satisfactory in their effective work. It identifies that open space work environment, which has been expansively provided for a long time, causes noise problem and deprives office workers of privacy and personalization opportunities. The respondents reply that meeting spaces are not enough in number and size and lack of privacy and its adequate quality . They respond that privacy , chair comfortness and storage spaces are important factors for personal work spaces. In order to improve the quality and efficiency of work, this study proposes that companies should provide convenient office facilities which considering human ergonomic and should educate professional facility managers.

• Journal of the Korea Furniture Society
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.305-313
• /
• 2017

Recently, as changes in the office environment, office furniture are changing at a rapid pace. With the development of various smart devices specialized in work type, the concepts of office environment and office furniture are diversified. New furniture design is presented with the new concept of work format and changes to the space, an example of a compact single-person storage space is required.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.228-239
• /
• 2013

Purpose: This study aims to assess the effects of psychosocial work environment and self-efficacy on stress, depression, and burn-out among office workers. Methods: Survey data were collected from 331 office workers who worked in one workplace from April 10 to 30, 2012. The impact of psychosocial work environment and self-efficacy on stress, depression, and burn-out was analyzed with hierarchical multiple regression using SAS version 9.3. Results: Work-family conflicts and emotional demands were identified as main factors influencing mental health. Other work environment factors influencing mental health were role clarity for stress, possibilities for development, meaning-of work, social support-from supervisors and job insecurity for depression, and social community at work for burn-out. Self-efficacy was correlated with most psychosocial work environment and factor with independent influence on stress and depression. The final models including general characteristics, psychosocial work environment, and self-efficacy accounted for 34%, 44%, and 36% for stress, depression, and burn-out respectively. Conclusion: To promote mental health in office workers, there is a need to decrease work-family conflicts and emotional demands and to improve work organization and job contents, social support, and self-efficacy.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.167-174
• /
• 2014

Objective: This research focuses on the working environment of office workers and aims to propose an ideal seating posture and chair design. Background: Generally, office workers having to seat in a fixed posture for long periods of time tend to suffer from an increased rate of musculoskeletal disorders. Method: The measurement and survey of 123 office workers on their working conditions and literature survey will lead to a suggestion of an ideal seating posture and workstation design theory. Results: Work environment satisfaction appeared low for chair and desks. Work-related pain over the last year was experienced among 47.2% of the respondents in shoulder (34.2%), neck (30.9%). Observation of working posture revealed that only 27.6% of workers utilize backrest during work. Conclusion: Office work embodies many situations where risks of musculoskeletal disorders may be high. Thus, the seated workplace must be set up to allow proper seating posture for workers. Application: The results of this study can be applied as baseline data for preventing musculoskeletal disorders of office workers.

• The Journal of Society for e-Business Studies
• /
• v.20 no.2
• /
• pp.37-71
• /
• 2015

At present, the importance of organizational effectiveness is highlighted even more as business environment enters into a new type of work setting, the smartwork environment. This new type of work environment could be significantly influential in promoting organizational effectiveness of office administrators who carry out atypical types of tasks in general and are exposed to emotional labor excessively. Organizational effectiveness of office administrators could also be controlled by their concerns at work, their personal values and the increasing demand for work-life balance. The main purpose of this research is to investigate how smartwork environment perceived by office administrators is related with organizational effectiveness. In addition, this research places the focus on how concerns and work-life balance moderate the relationship between smartwork environment and organizational effectiveness. The survey was conducted among 102 office administrators, and data were analyzed by moderated multiple regression analysis method. Job autonomy of smartwork environment showed positive effect on job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and innovative behavior. IT dependence of smartwork environment showed negative effect on job satisfaction and organizational commitment and positive effect innovative behavior. It was found that concerns with impact positively moderate the effects of job autonomy on job satisfaction and innovative behavior; concerns with self negatively moderate the effects of job autonomy on organizational commitment and innovative behavior. Also, it was found that work-life balance moderates the effects of job autonomy on organizational commitment and the effects of IT dependence on innovative behavior. The result of this research can be taken into consideration when a strategic human resource development plan is prepared for office administrators in smartwork environment.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
• /
• no.29
• /
• pp.163-172
• /
• 2001

An office is understood as a system consisted of three subsystem : office work, technology and organization. In the age of information, an office is a complicated device in an organization to create, process, modify and deliver various information for organizational goals. The purpose of this study is to provide design guidelines on office workstations based on the analysis of employees' preference and work-style responding to current changes of an organization and work process. Through a literature survey, the study briefly reviewed characteristics of interior design to find changing factors and directions of office interior. Work characteristics in an office are analyzed based on information, activity and communication characteristics while office environment is analyzed based on physical and technological factors. Finally, questionnaire items are derived from a critical comparison between work characteristics and workstation organization(furniture etc) factor. workplace strategies by preference are suggested to increase office productivity, employee satisfaction and to reduce space costs.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Interior Design Conference
• /
• 2005.05a
• /
• pp.243-246
• /
• 2005

As seen in constant reference to our modern are as the 'Information Age', our daily lives are flooded with a variety of information. Under such circumstance, efficient management and distribution of information are increasingly needed. When it comes to office environment, the role of furniture is very important because furniture must be placed in the office and it also serves as an essential component to improve work efficiency. As the importance of furniture increases, office furniture reflects diverse needs. That is to say, office furniture is used to partition space while reflecting mental and emotional state of workers in the office. At this backdrop, it can be perceived that office goes beyond a place where work is done. In order to contemplate how office and office furniture enhance work efficiency and create pleasant, delightful office environment, the study in this paper identified and examined overall color images of office, and color use and color preference in office furniture. The purposes of this study were: 1) to identify the use of and preference for color images of office 2) to analyze the color images of office furniture and understand its color use and color preference; 3) to understand the color use and color preference in office storage furniture.