Reliability of job-title based physical work exposures for the upper extremity: comparison to self-reported and observed exposure estimates.
Authors
Gardner-BT; Lombardi-DA; Dale-AM; Franzblau-A; Evanoff-BA
Source
Occup Environ Med 2010 Aug; 67(8):538-547
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the agreement between job-title based estimates for upper extremity physical work exposures and exposure estimates from work observation and worker self-report. METHODS: Self-reported exposure questionnaires were completed by 972 workers, and exposure estimates based on worksite observation were completed for a subset of 396 workers. Job-title based estimates were obtained from O*NET, an American database of job demands. Agreement between self-reported, observed and job-title based physical work exposures was assessed using Spearman correlations and intraclass correlation coefficients. RESULTS: Job-title based exposure estimates from O*NET, self-reported and observer-rated exposures showed moderate to good levels of agreement for some upper extremity exposures, including lifting, forceful grip, use of vibrating tools and wrist bending. CONCLUSIONS: Job-title based physical work exposure variables may provide useful surrogate measures of upper extremity exposure data in the absence of other individual level data such as observed or self-reported exposure. Further validation of these data is necessary to determine the utility of the O*NET databases in future epidemiological studies.
Keywords
Epidemiology; Ergonomics; Exposure-assessment; Exposure-levels; Exposure-methods; Injuries; Injury-prevention; Management-personnel; Musculoskeletal-system-disorders; Occupational-exposure; Occupational-hazards; Occupational-health; Occupational-psychology; Occupations; Physical-stress; Physiological-effects; Physiology; Quantitative-analysis; Questionnaires; Safety-measures; Safety-practices; Safety-research; Statistical-analysis; Work-analysis; Work-environment; Worker-health; Worker-motivation; Work-operations; Work-organization; Work-performance; Workplace-studies; Work-practices
Contact
Bradley A Evanoff, Washington University School of Medicine, Division of General Medical Sciences, Campus Box 8005, 660 S. Euclid Avenue, Saint Louis, MO 63110
Document Type
Journal Article
Email Address
bevanoff@dom.wustl.edu
Identifying No.
Grant-Number-R01-OH-008017
Priority Area
Construction; Manufacturing
Source Name
Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Performing Organization
Washington University - St. Louis, Missouri
