Ergonomic Perceptions and Practices among Students in E-learning during COVID-19
Abstract
The sudden shift to e-learning during the pandemic has challenged the students in setting up proper work areas with available space and resources. However, it is unclear whether these spaces conform to good ergonomic standards, which apply to information about human behaviour, abilities, limitations and other characteristics to the design of tools, machines, tasks, jobs and environments for productive, safe, comfortable and effective human use. This study was conducted, in order to assess the ergonomic perceptions and practices in e-learning during the COVID-19 pandemic among the Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University students. An analytical cross-sectional design was used with a convenience sample of 384 students from January to April 2021. A self-administered online questionnaire was used for the data collection. A descriptive data analysis and a Pearson chi-square test were done, using JMP Version 14. The results indicated positive ergonomic perceptions. With regard to practices, most desktop laptop users applied good ergonomic practices (80.7%). In contrast, 50.5% of laptop-without-desk users and 47% of smartphone/tablet users engaged in poor ergonomic practices. Furthermore, the findings showed that there were no significant associations between ergonomic practices and ergonomic perceptions. The study recommends the provision of health-education programmes to encourage the application of correct ergonomic practices. In addition to applying flexible breaks during classes, the study advocates the adoption of practices that avoid.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Al-Hinai, N., Al-Kindi, M., & Shamsuzzoha, A. (2018). An ergonomic student chair design and engineering for classroom environment. International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Robotics Research, 7(5), 534?543. https://doi.org/10.18178/ijmerr.7.5.534-543
Almuwais, A., Alqabbani, S., Benajiba, N., & Almoayad, F. (2021). Emergency Shifting to E-Learning in Health Professions Education: A Comparative Study of Perspectives between Students and Instructors. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 20(6). https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.20.6.2
Alqabbani, S., Almuwais, A., Benajiba, N., & Almoayad, F. (2020). Readiness towards emergency shifting to remote learning during COVID-19 pandemic among university instructors. E-Learning and Digital Media, 18(5), 460-479. https://doi.org/10.1177/2042753020981651
Altalhi, A., Khayyat, W., Khojah, O., Alsalmi, M., & Almarzouki, H. (2020). Computer vision syndrome among health sciences students in Saudi Arabia: prevalence and risk factors. Cureus, 12(2), e7060. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.7060
Bandura, A. (2011). Social cognitive theory. In P. A. M. Van Lange, E. T. Higgins, & A. W. Kruglanski (Eds.), Handbook of social psychological theories (Vol. 2012, pp. 349?373). SAGE publications Ltd.
Barr, A. E., Barbe, M. F., & Clark, B. D. (2004). Work-related musculo-skeletal disorders of the hand and wrist: epidemiology, pathophysiology, and sensorimotor changes. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 34(10), 610?627. https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2004.34.10.610
Choobineh, A., Rahimifard, H., Jahangiri, M., & Mahmoodkhani, S. (2012). Musculoskeletal injuries and their associated risk factors in office workplaces. Iran Occupational Health, 8(4), 70?81.
Davis, K. G., Kotowski, S. E., Daniel, D., Gerding, T., Naylor, J., & Syck, M. (2020). The Home Office: Ergonomic Lessons From the “New Normal”. Ergonomics in Design, 28(4), 4?10. https://doi.org/10.1177/1064804620937907
Diaco, S. B. (2014). Effects of noise pollution in the learning environment on cognitive performances. Liceo Journal of Higher Education Research, 10(1), 83.
Dianat, I., Vahedi, A., & Dehnavi, S. (2016). Association between objective and subjective assessments of environmental ergonomic factors in manufacturing plants. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 54, 26?31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2015.12.004
Dul, J., Bruder, R., Buckle, P., Carayon, P., Falzon, P., Marras, W. S., Wilson, J. R., & van der Doelen, B. (2012). A strategy for human factors/ergonomics: developing the discipline and profession. Ergonomics, 55(4), 377?395. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2012.661087
Dul, J., & Weerdmeester, B. (2003). Ergonomics for beginners: a quick reference guide. CRC press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203212097
El-sallamy, R. M., Atlam, S. A., Kabbash, I., El-fatah, S. A., & El-flaky, A. (2018). Knowledge, attitude, and practice towards ergonomics among undergraduates of Faculty of Dentistry, Tanta University, Egypt. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 25(31), 30793?30801. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-8615-3
Genaidy, A. M., & Karwowski, W. (1993). The effects of neutral posture deviations on perceived joint discomfort ratings in sitting and standing postures. Ergonomics, 36(7), 785?792. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139308967942
Hamilton, A. G., Jacobs, K., & Orsmond, G. (2005). The prevalence of computer-related musculoskeletal complaints in female college students. Work, 24(4), 387?394. https://content.iospress.com/articles/work/wor00437
Harutunian, K., Gargallo Albiol, J., Barbosa de Figueiredo, R. P., & Gay Escoda, C. (2011). Ergonomics and musculo-skeletal pain among postgraduate students and faculty members of the School of Dentistry of the University of Barcelona (Spain). A cross-sectional study. Medicina Oral, Patología Oral y Cirugia Bucal, 16(3), 425?429. https://doi.org/10.4317/medoral.16.e425
Haverinen-Shaughnessy, U., & Shaughnessy, R. J. (2015). Effects of Classroom Ventilation Rate and Temperature on Students’ Test Scores. PLOS ONE, 10(8), e0136165. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0136165
Koca, E., & Kaya, Ö. (2018). On ergonomic perception. In R.S. Goonetilleke and W. Karwowski (eds.), Advances in Physical Ergonomicsand Human Factors, Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 602. http://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60825-9_43
Mahmud, N., Kenny, D., & Heard, R. (2011). Office ergonomics awareness and prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among office workers in the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia: A Cross-Sectional Study. Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 1, 8?29. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dianna_Kenny/publication/223995090_Office_ergonomics_awareness_and_prevalence_of_musculoskeletal_disorders_among_office_workers_in_the_Universiti_Teknologi_Malaysia_A_cross_sectional_study/links/02e7e52719ea2715f3000000/Office-ergonomics-awareness-and-prevalence-of-musculoskeletal-disorders-among-office-workers-in-the-Universiti-Teknologi-Malaysia-A-cross-sectional-study.pdf
Makhbul, Z. M., Abdullah, N. L., & Senik, Z. C. (2013). Ergonomics and Stress at Workplace: Engineering Contributions to Social Sciences. Jurnal Pengurusan, 37, 125?131. https://doi.org/10.17576/pengurusan-2013-37-12
Mashige, K. P., Rampersad, N., & Oduntan, O. (2013). A study of ergonomic factors leading to computer vision syndrome among computer users. Ergonomics SA: Journal of the Ergonomics Society of South Africa, 25(1), 3?12. https://doi.org/10.4314/ESA.V25I1
Murray, C. J. L. (2022). COVID-19 will continue but the end of the pandemic is near. Lancet, 399(10323), 417-419. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(22)00100-3
NCSU. (2010). North Carolina State University Ergonomic Evaluation Form.
NIH. (2020). Computer workstation ergonomics: Self-Assessment checklist. National Institutes of Health. https://kingcounty.gov/~/media/audience/employees/safety-health/safety-claims/Safety/APP/Computer_Workstation_Ergonomics_Self_Assessment_Checklist_12720.ashx?la=en
OSHA. (2015). Computer Workstations eTool. Occupational Safety & Health Administration. https://www.osha.gov/etools/computer-workstations
Qiong, O. (2017). A brief introduction to perception. Studies in literature and language, 15(4), 18?28. https://doi.org/10.3968/10055
Samani, S. A., & Samani, S. A. (2012). The impact of indoor lighting on students' learning performance in learning environments: A knowledge internalization perspective. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(24). https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-Impact-of-Indoor-Lighting-on-Students%27-Learning-Samani-Samani/af359ac7cb689315fa85690f654f34c3409daf89
Shahzad, A., Hassan, R., Aremu, A. Y., Hussain, A., & Lodhi, R. N. (2021). Effects of COVID-19 in E-learning on higher education institution students: the group comparison between male and female. Quality & Quantity, 55(3), 805?826. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-020-01028-z
Shikdar, A. A., & Al-Kindi, M. A. (2007). Office ergonomics: deficiencies in computer work-station design. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 13(2), 215?223. https://doi.org/10.1080/10803548.2007.11076722
Soltaninejad, M., Babaei-Pouya, A., Poursadeqiyan, M., & Feiz Arefi, M. (2021). Ergonomics factors influencing school education during the COVID-19 pandemic: A literature review. Work, 68, 69?75. https://doi.org/10.3233/WOR-203355
Vimalanathan, K., & Babu, R. (2017). A study on the effect of ergonomics on computer operating office workers in India. J Ergonomics, 7(5), 557?567. https://doi.org/10.4172/2165-7556.1000211
Zovki?, M., Vrbanec, T., & Dobša, J. (2011). Computer ergonomic of elementary school students. Central European Conference on Information and Intelligent Systems.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
e-ISSN: 1694-2116
p-ISSN: 1694-2493