Ergonomics and sustainable development in the past two decades (1992-2011): Research trends and how ergonomics can contribute to sustainable development

Research trends in ergonomics, industrial safety and health: semantic network and topic analyses

We evaluated the research trends in ergonomics, industrial safety and health from the 1980s to the present. In the ergonomics area, keywords and abstracts from five journals were analyzed. For industrial safety and health, six journal databases were evaluated. A frequency analysis, a semantic network of keywords and a topic network of abstracts were conducted. The results of ergonomics showed that 'macro-ergonomics' and 'manual material handling' were the most popular topics, and 'ergonomic' and 'electromyography' were the most cited keywords. 'Posture' and 'biomechanics' were the most frequently used with high centrality. The results of industrial safety and health showed that 'job stress' and 'organizational safety' were the most popular topics, and 'occupational exposure' and 'occupational health' were the most cited keywords. 'Dust' and 'exposure' were frequently used with high centrality. The results would be helpful in understanding the trends of research efforts and foreseeing trends of future research.

A retrospective analysis of the evolution of ergonomics for environmental sustainability (2011-2021)

Ergonomics for environmental sustainability has been rapidly gaining attention in the scientific community. So far, a large part of the literature has focussed on specific dimensions of ergonomics for environmental sustainability, such as green designs, green buildings, environmental education, and sustainability frameworks. However, there is a necessity for an integrated study that presents the summary of published literature supported by detailed bibliometric characteristics. To address this gap, this study examined 418 articles on ergonomics for environmental sustainability and analysed them through bibliometric and network analysis. Major findings reveal the publication trends in ergonomics for environmental sustainability starting from 2011 to the present, the most productive and influential authors, and the most influential articles. This study also identifies the co-citation structure, bibliographical couplings and keyword co-occurrences among these articles. Findings from this study also provide a summary of the current research and present a robust roadmap for future directions in ergonomics for environmental sustainability.Practitioner summary: This paper presents a bibliometric and network analysis of the academic literature in the domain of ergonomics for environmental sustainability. The study provides comprehensive insights into the relevant literature and identifies global research foci and future scopes. This study can guide practitioners in identifying the specific aspects of ergonomics for environmental sustainability to reduce global environmental impacts.

Contribution of ergonomics and human factors to sustainable development: a systematic literature review

Although a significant amount of research has already been published, the field of ergonomics/human factors and sustainability (E/HF-S) has not yet been systematically profiled based on recent studies. Conducting a systematic review of the literature, this article aims: (i) to identify the main emergent research themes in this subject area and (ii) to provide future directions for applied research and practice on E/HF-S. Six emergent research themes were identified in this literature allowing for a proposal to synthesise the main concepts related to E/HF-S. However, it was noted that there are still relatively few empirical papers which assess the models being developed or that apply E/HF principles to sustainability challenges. Thus, this paper identifies the opportunities for practical application related to E/HF-S. The last part of the paper explores the E/HF-S opportunities using an external framework; the United Nations' sustainable development goals.Practitioner summary: The field of ergonomics/human factors and sustainability (E/HF-S) has not yet been organised by recent studies. Conducting a systematic review of the literature, this article identifies the main emergent research themes in this subject area, and it provides future direction for applied research and practice on E/HF-S.Abbreviations: ACE: activity-centred ergonomics; E/HF: ergonomics/human factors; E/HFS: ergonomics/human factors and sustainability; IEA: International Ergonomics Association; PRISMA: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses; SDG: Sustainable Development Goal.

High-impact papers in the field of anesthesiology: a 10-year cross-sectional study

PURPOSE

This study was performed to evaluate trends in and provide future direction for anesthesiology education, research, and clinical practice.

METHODS

We collected high-impact papers, ranking in the top 10% in the field of anesthesiology and published from 2011 to 2020, by the InCites tool based on the Web of Science Core Collection. We analyzed the trends, locations, distribution of subject categories, research organizations, collaborative networks, and subject terms of these papers.

RESULTS

A total of 4,685 high-impact papers were included for analysis. The number of high-impact papers increased from 462 in 2011 to 520 in 2020. The paper with the highest value of category normalized citation impact (115.95) was published in Anesthesia and Analgesia in 2018. High-impact papers were mainly distributed in the subject categories of "Anesthesiology," "Clinical Neurology," "Neurosciences," and "Medicine General Internal." They were primarily cited in "Anesthesiology," "Clinical Neurology," "Neurosciences," "Medicine General Internal," and "Surgery." Most of these high-impact papers came from the USA, UK, Canada, Germany, and Australia. The most productive institutions were the League of European Research Universities, Harvard University, University of Toronto, University of London, University of California System, and University Health Network Toronto. Research collaboration circles have been formed in the USA, UK, and Canada. Subject-term analysis indicated postoperative analgesia, chronic pain, and perioperative complications were high-interest topics, and COVID-19 became a new hot topic in 2020.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study provides a historical view of high-impact papers in anesthesiology in the past ten years. High-impact papers were mostly from the USA. Postoperative analgesia, chronic pain, and perioperative complications have been hot topics, and COVID-19 became a new topic in 2020. These findings provide references for education, research, and clinical practice in the field of anesthesiology.

Investigating the influence of total productive maintenance key success factors on the social sustainability dimension of manufacturing SMEs

Purpose

Key success factors (KSFs) of total productive maintenance (TPM) have historically played a vital role in attaining economic and ecological sustainability but have overlooked social sustainability. Hence, this study analyses and ranks the most significant TPM KSFs for attaining social sustainability in manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

The research employs a deductive methodology to identify the relevant TPM KSFs and social sustainability indicators and then uses Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) to rank the TPM KSFs in order to achieve social sustainability, followed by a sensitivity analysis to assess the methodological robustness.

Findings

The findings indicate that the top five TPM KSFs influencing social sustainability are employee health and safety, organizational culture, top management commitment, employee engagement and effective communication and effective workplace management. In addition, the results indicate that effective equipment utilization is the least significant TPM key factor affecting social sustainability.

Research limitations/implications

SME manufacturing managers do not need to worry about all of the TPM KSFs if they only concentrate on the ones that will have the most impact. If managers use the top 5 TPM KSFs as a starting point, they may create customized TPM training programs for their companies. As a result, this will facilitate the efforts of their personnel toward social sustainability.

Originality/value

In the existing literature, little emphasis has been paid to social sustainability and how SMEs may implement these practices. This research adds to the current theory of TPM and social sustainability and sheds light on how SMEs might use TPM to advance toward more socially sustainable operations.

Past, present, and future of E/HF for sustainability: A perspective from the HFSD Technical Committee

BACKGROUND: Sustainability is a highly important theme worldwide and currently is being tackled by almost all disciplines. Indeed, the future of humanity is dependent on the actions taken now and in the immediate future. The Ergonomics and Human Factors (E/HF) community has not been indifferent to this issue, and one of the concrete actions adopted by the International Ergonomics Association (IEA) was the establishment of the “Human Factors for Sustainable Development” (HFSD) Technical Committee. OBJECTIVE: To identify future paths of action, this paper recognizes the trajectory of the HFSD Technical Committee, summarizes the contributions presented at IEA2021, the International Congress on Ergonomics held virtually in Vancouver in 2021, and reflects on key aspects that should be boosted by the Technical Committee. METHODS: This is a qualitative interpretative study that reflects on the contributions of members of the HFSD community working on E/HF for sustainability. RESULTS: Central topics and opportunities in E/HF and sustainability include complexity of systems, behaviors, and work; energy use and consumption; co-design, interconnectivity, territories, and the relationships with stakeholders. CONCLUSION: Although the contributions have been growing, there is still a lot of work needed, both theoretically and practically. Themes to be discussed include the concepts of sustainability and work. Considering the centrality of human beings (i.e., decision making for achieving the different dimensions of sustainability), the authors identify a set of values as core principles for leading the discussion.

Design Factors to Improve the Consistency and Sustainable User Experience of Responsive Interface Design

Computers have been extended to a variety of devices, such as smart phones, tablets, and smart watches, thereby increasing the importance of responsive interfaces across multi-terminal devices. To ensure a consistent and sustainable user experience for websites and software products, it is important to study the layout, design elements, and users’ visual perception of different terminal interfaces. In this paper, the multi-terminal interfaces of 40 existing responsive websites were studied in a hierarchical grouping experiment, and six typical interface layouts were classified and extracted. Then, the main design factors affecting interface consistency of the responsive website were extracted and classified through eye tracking and a questionnaire survey. Finally, taking a sales management software tool (SA) as an example for design application, we successfully created responsive interfaces across multi-terminal devices with a consistent and sustainable experience.

Collaboration Between Humans and Robots in Organizations: A Macroergonomic, Emotional, and Spiritual Approach

The new managerial challenges are related to finding solutions for complex problems, inside some more and more complex management systems, in a continuously changing organizational context. Competitivity and progress imply a continuous positive change and the need to accept, respond, and adapt to the organization’s internal and external environments changes. This brief research report aims to point out the organizational ergonomics’ contribution to employees’ wellbeing through a systemic, emotional, and spiritual approach to man’s interaction with technology, systems, and organizational environment. The research methods used were the multidisciplinary bibliographic study and the interview. Three semi-structured interviews were taken to explore today’s challenges and new 4.0 technologies’ impact, especially robots, on the company and on employees’ wellbeing and spiritual fulfillment. The novelty comes from the analysis of new technologies’ impact on the human factor from the spiritual point of view. Our main results have to do with the shaping of a model for human capital’s valorization and with suggesting a list for monitoring human capital valorization in the company. This article’s main conclusion shows that the organizations’ management must be prepared to manage future challenges by improving the employee’s abilities, adaptability to change, and collaboration with robots.

Impact of COVID-19 on supply chains: lessons learned and future research directions

Purpose

This study aims to review and organize the research articles which focused on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic in the supply chain (SC) domain through a bibliometric and network analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

Initially, a total of 772 research articles with selected keywords were retrieved from the Scopus database for the year 2020 (with the commencement of COVID-19 outbreak). After the filtration and refinement, 484 research articles were found relevant and unique. Further, this study systematically reviews and evaluates the 484 research articles including influential authors, keys journals, influential research work, and collaboration among the countries and institutes with the help of bibliometric analysis tool. The emergent research clusters are identified and established.

Findings

The findings reveal that the total number of related publications are steadily growing with the United States leading the way. European countries have made notable accomplishments as well. In addition, both the most cited publications and the keyword distribution provide research guidance for future research.

Practical implications

This study focuses on the need and advancement of the literature on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on SCs to frame a research agenda for researchers and practitioners.

Originality/value

The present study offers future research directions in the area of SC under the pandemic situation.

Machinery Safety and Ergonomics: A Case Study Research to Augment Agricultural Tracklaying Tractors' Safety and Usability

Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) in agricultural activities is an issue of major concern worldwide notwithstanding the ever stricter regulations issued in this sector. In particular, most accidents are related to the use of tractors and the main causes of this phenomenon are due to the lack of rollover protective structures (ROPSs). This happens especially when tractors are used in particular in-field operations that are characterized by limited clearances between tractor and crop rows so that farmers usually use tractors without ROPS (e.g., dismounting it). To solve such a problem, foldable protective structures (FROPSs) have been proposed, which should augment the operator's protection. However, FROPS's conventional solutions underestimate the operators' risk-taking behavior and the widespread misuse of FROPS due to the efforts needed to operate it. The current study aims at contributing to the improvement of the latter issue proposing the development of a novel approach for the implementation of partial assistance systems (PASs) that can reduce the physical effort of the operator when raising/lowering the FROPS. The proposed methodology, which is based on a reverse engineering approach, was verified by means of a practical case study on a tracklaying tractor. Results achieved can contribute to expanding knowledge on technical solutions aimed at improving the human-machinery interaction in the agricultural sector.

NOSACQ-50 for Safety Climate Assessment in Agricultural Activities: A Case Study in Central Italy

Safety climate assessment has been recognized as a powerful tool to bring to light workers' perceptions related to safety practices, attitudes and behaviors at the workplace. Accordingly, its investigation can provide useful information about safety problems within a company before accidents occur. In literature, numerous studies can be found investigating safety climates in different types of industry. However, safety climate assessment in agricultural activities is addressed scarcely, even though agriculture represents a very hazardous sector. To reduce this gap, the present study proposes an investigation of safety climate among farmers by means of the Nordic Safety Climate Questionnaire (NOSACQ-50). The results of the survey brought to light a low level of safety perception of the interviewed sample, especially as concerns safety commitment and risk-taking attitudes. In particular, a different attitude toward safety issues has been registered depending on both the position and gender of the interviewed farmers. Overall, the output of this cross-sectional analysis adds to the current literature by expanding knowledge of safety climate among farmers, representing a baseline for further investigations based on human-centered approaches to enhance safety in agriculture and consequently social and workplace aspects of sustainable agricultural systems.

Development of Sustainability Indicators for Employee-Activity Based Production Process Using Fuzzy Delphi Method

Production process sustainability refers to a manufacturing system in which manufacturing industries produce products in a sustainable way. In recent years, sustainability has become a major concern and challenge for manufacturing systems because of growing consciousness of the effects of their activities on the environment, society, and economy. Different organizational reports and the academic literature have proposed indicators of sustainable manufacturing that help to measure product and process sustainability. However, little of the previous research is related to employee-activity based indicators for production process sustainability. To bridge the gap, this study identified a set of indicators of production process sustainability based on direct and indirect impacts of manufacturing activities on employees, who are key resources in the entire production process, for efficiently applying a sustainability perspective. In addition, the paper provides an evaluation model for selecting relatively important indicators based on expert opinions. A fuzzy Delphi method was applied for the screening process of the decision makers (experts). A Delphi questionnaire prepared with a nine-point linguistic scale corresponding to respective linguistic variables was utilized to assess expert opinions on the importance of each indicator. These expert opinions were aggregated for each indicator by using an adopted algorithm that considers the degree of importance allocated to the decision makers, and the similarity and distance among decision maker opinions. Lastly, the key employee-activity based indicators were chosen based on the threshold value set.

Door-to-door waste collection: Analysis and recommendations for improving ergonomics in an Italian case study

In the last decade, door-to-door waste collection methods have been largely applied by several municipalities in Italy, with the main purpose to achieve higher rates of sorted waste. This approach requires waste collectors to handle a high number of small waste containers during their work-shift, especially in urban areas and historic city centres. Workers may experience ergonomic issues during door-to-door waste collection, due to the characteristics of the waste containers, the waste collection equipment, the work organization and citizens' behaviour. If not well planned and managed, this activity may expose waste collectors to ergonomic risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders. This study proposes a detailed investigation of the door-to-door waste collection strategy operated in an Italian city centre for the collection of organic municipal solid waste, green waste and residual waste. The aim is to investigate the impact of door-to-door waste collection strategies on the health and safety of the workers involved in this activity. The results show that the lack of proper waste collection equipment determines poor ergonomics conditions during door-to-door collection of green waste. The poor design of operations and technology is the cause of ergonomic issues in the door-to-door collection of organic municipal solid waste and residual waste. Finally, work organization factors impact on the safety and health of all the waste collectors involved in this study. A set of recommendations and suggestions are provided to managers, workers and citizens involved in door-to-door waste collection, showing that this activity can be sustainable if well designed and managed.

A structural framework for sustainable processes in ergonomics

Considering today's globalised world, new concepts that assist ergonomics are needed to provide human well-being. Accordingly, the sustainability concept is used in this study to satisfy the needs of stakeholders, put environmentally-friendly and cost-effective interventions into practice and provide ergonomically well-designed and easily managed processes that are more flexible, adaptable and human-sensitive. To achieve this, a practical and easily adaptable framework, which integrates ergonomics and sustainability by presenting the relations between fundamental elements of ergonomics and sustainability dimensions (SDs), is proposed. Within this base framework, ergonomic indicators (EIs) and sub-dimensions proposed for the classification of EIs are structured for ergonomics under a sustainability point-of-view. The sub-dimensions proposed in this study, which have direct or indirect relations to humans, are 'Loss', 'Investment', 'Conditions', 'Contribution', 'Self-Development', and 'Satisfaction'. This structural framework, which can be easily used by ergonomists or managers, ensures a good starting point for providing sustainable processes in ergonomics. Practitioner summary: This study proposes a structural framework to present the relations between ergonomics and sustainability. In the context of ergonomics, fundamental elements of ergonomics are chosen, while three dimensions of sustainability and proposed sub-dimensions are used in the context of sustainability. The adapted ergonomic indicators are also classified within these sub-dimensions.Abbreviations: SDs: sustainability dimensions; SIs: sustainability indicators; EIs: ergonomic indicators.

Assessment of occupational safety, health, and ergonomics issues in agriculture in some cities of Iran

BACKGROUND

Iran has a variety of climates which support agriculture in different seasons. Hence, a significant proportion of people, especially in rural areas, are engaged in farming. Agriculture is considered one of the most insecure job sectors in developing and developed countries.

OBJECTIVE

Since there is no comprehensive study on safety, health, and ergonomics issues in Iran's agriculture, it is necessary to use checkpoints to assess occupational safety, health, and ergonomics issues in Iran's agriculture.

METHODS

In this study, 430 villages from seven provinces of Iran were selected to study safety, health, and ergonomics in agriculture using ergonomic checkpoints. The checkpoints were collected with the help of rural health centers.

RESULTS

The results of the study showed that the villages of Kurdistan Province had the best safety, health, and working conditions (66.12%); and Khuzestan province villages had the worst safety, health, and working conditions (38.16%). Among the ergonomic checkpoints in agriculture, the control of hazardous chemicals (CHC) index with 71.41% and work organization and work schedule (WOWS) index with 35.25% represented the best and worst ergonomic conditions of the study villages, respectively. Furthermore, the general index of ergonomics in agriculture for the study villages was 53.64%. Therefore, Khuzestan Province and the WOWS index top the priorities for corrective actions to improve the safety, health and working conditions in agriculture.

CONCLUSIONS

The ergonomics indices in Iranian agriculture are important, and should be prioritized for corrective actions.

Ergonomics-Based Factors or Criteria for the Evaluation of Sustainable Product Manufacturing

The issue of sustainability has received substantial attention internationally. It is spreading widely through policy, industry, commerce, research, academia, and other arenas. However, most previous studies on product sustainability were conducted based on a consideration of environmental protection, economic prosperity, and social wellbeing criteria, but there was less representation of specific social wellbeing criteria. The main objective of this study was to formulate well-defined ergonomics-based criteria for product sustainability evaluation and to validate the importance of the identified factors using a fuzzy Delphi method. In this paper, ergonomics-based product sustainability factors are organized by sustainability categories and grouped into employee wellbeing, the economy, and the environment. In the context of manufacturing, evaluating product sustainability from an ergonomics perspective provides more comprehensive social dimension criteria by addressing human characteristics, behavior, performance, human interaction with a product, workplace, working environment, and the product across its life cycle. In addition, a Delphi questionnaire, designed with a nine-point scale, was applied to obtain expert opinions on the importance of each factor; the opinions were combined for each factor by considering the degree of importance assigned to the experts, and the similarities and differences between expert opinions. Finally, high-priority factors were screened from the sustainability categories based on their respective threshold value. Knowing these high-priority factors will help manufacturing industries allocate their resources accordingly for sustainability improvement.

Seven Approaches to Manage Complex Coupled Human and Natural Systems: A Sustainability Toolbox

Since the publication of the Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987, there have been numerous studies on sustainability. These studies created new knowledge and tools for understanding and managing complex coupled human and natural systems. In this Critical Review, we used a topic modeling technique to analyze 12 526 peer-reviewed research articles and identify the research questions and the approaches that were used or developed in each of the studies. These approaches were then classified by function. The analysis revealed twenty-three categories of research questions and seven functional approach classes-design for sustainability, modeling of complexity, sustainability indicators, life cycle sustainability assessment, decision making support, sustainability governance, and engagement-each of which is described here as an individual approach or tool within a larger sustainability toolbox. The article concludes with a discussion about using the sustainability toolbox as an integrated knowledge system to support transdisciplinary study and decision-making.

Introducing ergonomics requirements in the eco-design of energy-related products from users' behaviour approach

Ergonomics has been a very important activity in the design process. However, ergonomics rarely includes the environmental requirements into the design of products. The article proposes and presents the Eco-Ergo model through its application to a real-world product, a washing machine, to allow designers and ergonomists to establish product design requirements in order to minimise environmental impacts related to user-product interaction during the use stage. This model uses a visual language of representation, Blueprinting-based, that helps designers explore problems they have not previously considered during the market research when a wide variety of products with different interaction elements is analysed. The application of this model allows direct efforts and attention on the user analysis phase in the most influential user's actions on the environmental performance of energy-related products during use, establishing ergonomics requirements related to users behaviour at the initial design phase. Practitioner summary: This study provides a proposal to incorporate ergonomics into the practice of eco-design through the use of human factors in the establishment of initial eco-design requirements. This blueprint-based model combines an empirical and theoretical approach, based on the product test developed by designers, ergonomists and environmentalists. Abbreviations: CO2: carbon dioxide; DBIM: design behaviour intervention model; DfSB: design for sustainable behaviour; DwI Method: design with intent method; LCA: life cycle assessment; LCD: liquid cristal display; MJ: megajoule; MTM: methods-time measurement; PSS: product-service system; RPM: revolutions per minute.

Managing Human Factors to Reduce Organisational Risk in Industry

Human factors are intrinsically involved at virtually any level of most industrial/business activities, and may be responsible for several accidents and incidents, if not correctly identified and managed. Focusing on the significance of human behaviour in industry, this article proposes a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM)-based approach to support organizational risk assessment in industrial environments. The decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method is proposed as a mathematical framework to evaluate mutual relationships within a set of human factors involved in industrial processes, with the aim of highlighting priorities of intervention. A case study related to a manufacturing process of a real-world winery is presented, and the proposed approach is applied to rank human factors resulting from a previous organisational risk evaluation from which suitable inference engines may be developed to better support risk management.

State of Science: ergonomics and global issues

In his 1993 IEA keynote address, Neville Moray urged the ergonomics discipline to face up to the global problems facing humanity and consider how ergonomics might help find some of the solutions. In this State of Science article we critically evaluate what the ergonomics discipline has achieved in the last two and a half decades to help create a secure future for humanity. Moray's challenges for ergonomics included deriving a value structure that moves us beyond a Westernised view of worker-organisation-technology fit, taking a multidisciplinary approach which engages with other social and biological sciences, considering the gross cross-cultural factors that determine how different societies function, paying more attention to mindful consumption, and embracing the complexity of our interconnected world. This article takes a socio-historical approach by considering the factors that influence what has been achieved since Moray's keynote address. We conclude with our own set of predictions for the future and priorities for addressing the challenges that we are likely to face. Practitioner Summary: We critically reflect on what has been achieved by the ergonomics profession in addressing the global challenges raised by Moray's 1993 keynote address to the International Ergonomics Association. Apart from healthcare, the response has largely been weak and disorganised. We make suggestions for priority research and practice that is required to facilitate a sustainable future for humanity.

Assessing the effectiveness of integrating ergonomics and sustainability: a case study of a Mexican maquiladora

In 2015, the United Nations defined sustainable industrialization as one of 17 sustainable development goals. In this article, an analysis is performed to assess the opportunities for ergonomics to contribute toward sustainability in the manufacturing industry. To that effect, a case study was carried out in a maquiladora of electronic components in the northwestern region of Mexico. The investigation was developed in four stages: (a) diagnosis; (b) planning; (c) implementations; (d) verification of results. Barriers found during each stage are presented. Finally, a discussion of the obtained results is provided, and areas of opportunity for programs or actions to prevent health risks are identified.

Perspectives on recycling centres and future developments

The overall aim of this paper is to draw combined, all-embracing conclusions based on a long-term multidisciplinary research programme on recycling centres in Sweden, focussing on working conditions, environment and system performance. A second aim is to give recommendations for their development of new and existing recycling centres and to discuss implications for the future design and organisation. Several opportunities for improvement of recycling centres were identified, such as design, layout, ease with which users could sort their waste, the work environment, conflicting needs and goals within the industry, and industrialisation. Combining all results from the research, which consisted of different disciplinary aspects, made it possible to analyse and elucidate their interrelations. Waste sorting quality was recognized as the most prominent improvement field in the recycling centre system. The research identified the importance of involving stakeholders with different perspectives when planning a recycling centre in order to get functionality and high performance. Practical proposals of how to plan and build recycling centres are given in a detailed checklist.

River and fish pollution in Malaysia: A green ergonomics perspective

Human activities, such as industrial, agricultural, and domestic pursuits, discharge effluents into riverine ecological systems that contains aquatic resources, such as fish, which are also used by humans. We conducted case studies in Malaysia to investigate the impacts of these human activities on water and fish resources, as well as on human well-being from an ergonomics perspective. This research shows that a green ergonomics approach can provide us with useful insights into sustainable relationships between humans and ecology in facilitating human well-being in consideration of the overall performance of the social-ecological system. Heavy metal concentrations contained in the effluents pollute river water and contaminate fish, eventually creating significant health risks and economic costs for residents, including the polluters. The study suggests a number of policy interventions to change human behavior and achieve greater collaboration between various levels of government, academia, civil society, and businesses to help establish sustainable relationships between humans and ecology in Malaysia.