Diana J. Schwerha

Development of a Weighted Heuristic for Website Evaluation for Older Adults

Older adults are the fastest growing population of Internet users. As websites acquire a greater number of older visitors, it is vital that they are designed with this demographic in mind. Older users typically have different user characteristics than younger users; they may have changes in perceptual abilities, motor skills, cognitive abilities, mental models, and confidence in the use of technology. This research documents the development of a new weighted heuristic measure for evaluating the usability of websites for older adults and its validation with performance testing. Results from a repeated measures analysis of variance indicated that websites with different heuristic classifications were significantly different with respect to performance metrics and System Usability Scale ratings. Conclusions point to the need for web design that takes into account preferences and abilities of older web users.

Healthcare Scheduling by Data Mining: Literature Review and Future Directions

This article presents a systematic literature review of the application of industrial engineering methods in healthcare scheduling, with a focus on the role of patient behavior in scheduling. Nine articles that used mathematical programming, data mining, genetic algorithms, and local searches for optimum schedules were obtained from an extensive search of literature. These methods are new approaches to solve the problems in healthcare scheduling. Some are adapted from areas such as manufacturing and transportation. Key findings from these studies include reduced time for scheduling, capability of solving more complex problems, and incorporation of more variables and constraints simultaneously than traditional scheduling methods. However, none of these methods modeled no-show and walk-ins patient behavior. Future research should include more variables related to patient and/or environment.

The Role of Human Factors in Older Worker Retention: What do we Know and what will we Need to Know?

In less than two years the oldest of the baby boom cohort will begin to turn 65 and the projected mass exodus of the older workforce will begin—or will it? With the recent change in the economy and loss of trillions of dollars in retirement savings, many older workers will most likely need to work slightly longer than expected. Additionally, companies will be in need of retaining their most experienced employees or they will need to recruit experienced workers from other places. The goal of this discussion panel is to provide the latest data on ways we can utilize human factors and ergonomics interventions to retain older workers. Panel discussants are divided between industry and academia, and they will address: 1) issues related to common injuries of the older worker and ways to reduce them, 2) work factors significant to the retention of older workers, and 3) retaining older workers who have disabilities.

Impact of Auditory and Visual Distractors upon Manual Assembly Task Learning among Older Workers with Different Levels of Spatial Reasoning and Field Dependence

We examined the impact of age upon learning a manual assembly task in the presence of visual and auditory distractors in males and females ranging in age between 18 and 65 years. Task learning, as measured by time to asymptote as well as error rate. Both metrics were affected by distractors when both auditory and visual distraction loads were present, and only in older subjects who possessed low spatial reasoning ability. Older subjects who possessed excellent spatial reasoning capability performed competitively with younger subjects. Recommendations for use of spatial reasoning and field dependence in future aging-related psychomotor task learning research are provided and practical use of these findings are discussed.

The Effect of Some Worker-Related Variables on Work Ability, Work Technique, and Number of Errors in a Packing Job

A study was conducted to determine the effect of some worker-related variables on work ability, work technique, and number of errors for a group of nine female employees aged 25 to 55 working as packers at a global distribution center located in the U.S.A. Work ability questionnaires (from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health) were given, quality ratings (as indicated by the number of errors) from the previous month were obtained, and employees were videotaped. Correlation analysis indicated that tenure was inversely related to work ability. Analysis of variance indicated that age and height were significantly related to the number of errors. Post-hoc tests indicated that older employees and taller employees had fewer errors. This finding was especially interesting considering that the workstations were designed for men or very tall women. This research serves as a pilot for a study aimed at discerning different working techniques through the development of a model that uses frequency and types of movements.

Prioritizing Ergonomic Research in Aging for the 21st Century American Workforce

The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that by 2006 Americans aged 55 and over will represent the greatest annual growth rate and will occupy nearly 30% of the American population. Additionally, by 2006 civilian labor force participation rates for the 55 and older group will grow to 36.8%, a 6.5% increase over the participation rates for this group for 1996, and over three times the percent increase of the next highest group (25 to 54 years; 1.7%). The predicted median age of the labor force for 2006 is estimated at 40.6 years, an age not approached since the median age rose to 40.5 years in 1962. Coupled with this aging profile, professional specialty occupations and service occupations are expected to provide nearly half of the total job growth during the decade leading to 2006. Within the professional specialty professions, nearly 90% of the employment increases are expected to occur in the service industry division, led by educational services and health services. The four industry sectors projected to produce the largest job growth are retail trade, business services, health services, and educational services. In contrast to the increases in the service and business sector, the manufacturing sector is expected to experience a loss of jobs, particularly for operators, fabricators, and laborers. The purpose of this paper is to merge demographic data with ergonomic and human factors data and predictions to explore areas of ergonomic research that will aid in keeping the aging workforce, and those with whom they interact, healthy in their jobs and keep the companies for whom they are employed competitive. Although some ergonomics research has been conducted in all the listed areas of expected growth, a return to the examination of the job demands in each sector, with an eye to particular application to the aging workforce, is important. The retail trade sector requires of the employee cognitive and visual skills, processing skills, and VDT work. It is expected that displays will continue to be studied to improve interaction and reduce glare. In addition, the increase in transportation jobs associated with business and trade, and the inclination for older baby boomer generation to continue driving will spur research on glare, displays, vibration, temperature, cognition, and psychomotor skills. Within the health services sector, the increase in the need for home health care will increase the number of older workers employed in this area, a change that will necessitate building upon the research already conducted on individual health and the ergonomics of work and the work environment in home settings. Educational services, especially for the changing workforce and the young workforce, will entice the aging into this field and promulgate new paradigms for training and work organization.