The Ergonomics Intervention Programme (EIP) can be a means of guaranteeing the most efficient use of the labour force of an industrially developing country (IDC) by creating safe and appropriate working conditions. Many problems at work can be resolved with ergonomics intervention, but persist due to a lack of ergonomics awareness and ‘know-how', as well as poor social awareness in education. This thesis represents an attempt at investigating how the Ergonomics Intervention Programme (EIP) and Ergonomics Intervention Programme Techniques (EIPTs) can be implemented in an organization by using an Ergonomics Intervention Technique (EIT) process (i.e. EIP activities, EIP team, and EIP process). The objective was to develop an action-oriented intervention process for the improvement of health and safety, as well as trying to improve work systems in IDC industries. To respond to these purposes, two main questions and four different sub-questions were formulated in this study as follows: I. Why are the efforts of these industries to implement and internalise the EIP being constrained? a. What are the main causes of these constraints? b. Is it that the EIP is difficult to implement? II. How should the EIPTs be delivered to the Iranian Industries and possibly to other organizations in IDCs, so that they can easily learn how to use them successfully? c. How can EIPTs be successfully implemented and internalised by such organizations? d. What practical activities are required for the EIPTs' implementation? This thesis also describes the development and results of using various methods during the last 10 years and illustrates the challenges of introducing EIP to Iranian industries. In this thesis, two complementary strategies have been used to collect and analyze evidence. Empirical evidence has been collected through case studies from pre-intervention phase of the EIP in Iranian Industries (as archival analysis), and action research in the three subsidiary companies while theoretical evidence has been collected through a literature study. Put simply, the conception of action research that I used is one of ‘learning by doing; individually and collectively'. One popular action research model is ‘reflecting, planning, acting, and observing'. The main difference between action research and the case study approach is noted in this study. Furthermore, in this study I mention many kinds of action research described as ‘Action Research' (AR), ‘Participatory Action Research' (PAR), and ‘Participatory and Appreciative Action Research' (PAAR). The purpose was to distinguish between the different kinds of reflections in joining up practice with theory, or ‘knowing-in-action' (i.e. the context was the EIP), including: ‘reflection-in-action' (i.e. the EIP was by ETWs), ‘reflection-on-practice, (i.e. EIP was by EIPTs) and ‘Meta-reflection' (i.e. this is thinking again about our reflection-on- practice). Based on data analyses and outcomes, an understanding was derived about factors which impact on the implementation of the EIPT Process Model. The main EIP activities were: Awakening for changing (A), Vision (V), Method of the EIPT (M), Learning (L), and Integrating (I)). Furthermore, the EIPT method in Study H was formulated to include, Participatory Ergonomics (PE) and Ergonomics Awareness Building (EAB). EAB includes; Ergonomics Training (ET), Ergonomics Application (EA), and Evaluation (E). Research Activities (RA) and Network Building (NB). The EIP team includes: action groups (AGs), a Steering Committee (SC), and Facilitator (s) (FA). The EIP process includes; routine (pre-intervention) tasks, modified (EIP process) tasks, and new EIP (post-intervention) tasks. Two key research questions emerged in the process of reflecting on the EIP. They were: (1) ‘What is it we want more of here, and how can we amplify this?' and (2) ‘How does the future unfold from an appreciation of the positive present?' These new research questions are the other side of this study. The author has discussed trying to get the EIP conversations to ‘Tip' positively. This opened up the possibility of having new kinds of conversation through EIP studies and for further research. For example, firstly, focusing on the root cause of a ‘problem' and risk of managing it, is essentially a conversation about what we may want less of here. Secondly, if we use our appreciative intelligence (i.e. the ability to perceive the positive inherent generative potential within the present), we open up the possibility of trying to understand the root cause of success. These conversations are about what we may want more of here. The main knowledge contribution of this study was the development and evaluation of a generally-applicable EIP and a range of EITs based on macro- ergonomics theory. Thus, the focus was mainly on improving workplace action and using participatory ergonomics processes through, the use of the EIPTs. Implementing and sustaining change were made possible by commitment to continual learning and focus on new improvement in action. The major outcome was a ‘Proposed model for the ergonomics ‘know-how' transfer at individual, group, and organizational levels in an IDC (at Micro/Macro ergonomics levels)'. The outcomes of this study are also used to provide industrial managers with a set of principles and processes to practically deal with ergonomics ‘know-how' transfer. Furthermore, Participatory, and Appreciative Action Research (PAAR) can help to develop an understanding of different ways to apply (research) ergonomics intervention techniques in an IDC. It is therefore a positive outcome and further development of this study. Pursuing the general question of PAAR; ‘what is it we want more of here and how can we amplify this?' I use an acronym ‘C.R.E.A.T.I.V.E' to point out some interesting avenues for future research. I hope this will be the next part of the EIP journey in the IDC. It will involve ‘heart, head, and hands' and especially behaviours that are ‘Human centered, Participatory, and Appreciative'! / Godkänd; 2008; 20080602 (ysko)

Godkänd; 1996; 20070822 (andbra)

In manual and semi-automation production systems, flexibility and adaptability are affected by the shop-floor operators’ skills, abilities and knowledge. Such dependencies highlight the vital importance of developing and utilising the knowledge, achievements and abilities of the operators working with production on the shop-floor. Teamwork, including both novice and highly experienced shop-floor operators, in a production environment with a high level of automation, is essential already today and is predicted to increase, when the complexity and demands of future production systems intensify. This trend is confirmed in both the research literature and by specialists within industry. The key to future competitiveness and effectiveness of the manufacturing industry is the shop-floor operators who handle the production systems. In addition, the future information intensive working environment, with its increasing complexity and less time available for decision-making, demands adaptive decision support and adaptive control systems that facilitate collaborative work on the shop-floor. It is therefore important to emphasise how decisions are supported in the time-limited working environment of the shop-floor, because this has a large impact on production output and quality and is vital to the success of the company. Consequently, this dissertation presents a framework for an adaptive decision support system that concentrates on shop-floor operators, in order to enhance their development and future contribution to leading edge production systems. The overall aim of the research presented is to define a framework for an Adaptive Decision Support System, to address the scope and demands of the future shop-floor, as indicated in the research literature, and confirm its relevance, as well as further elaborate it on the basis of interviews with production managers and HR specialists The research presented uses the design science research process. In parallel, decision support systems and the industrial shop-floor have been studied in the research literature and the current state of industrial practice has been assessed. These areas together form the basis for the research on adaptive decision support for shop-floor operators. A framework enabling adaptive decision support and adaptive system control, based on event-driven function block technology and Augmented Reality technology, is formulated. The gap of research on decision support for shop-floor operators, indicated in the research literature is addressed by the research preformed.  Adaptive and dynamic decision support and system control able to process vast amounts of information in real time demonstrates utility for shop-floor operators. The research presenting the Adaptive Decision Support System has demonstrated its utility for shop-floor systems and production operatives in two extensive studies using demonstrators based on real-life production environments. A methodology, the ‘User group’, has been formulated for research collaboration and bi-directional knowledge transfer between academia and the industrial partners. It provides tools that enable cooperation between the experienced research partner and the novices, despite their different levels of engagement in the same project, without dividing them into separate groups. The ‘user group’ case study presented describes how both the inexperienced and the research mature companies gain new knowledge and engage in ongoing research. By doing so, the industrial project partners have extensively supported the research presented and will subsequently be the expected beneficiaries.

In the field of medicine, various representative simulations have been developed to support the decreasing number of learning opportunities with real patients; the use of virtual patients is among them. Virtual patients are real-life clinical scenarios used for the purpose of medical education. They usually follow a linear or branching approach and they are usually accessed via a computer browser or as part of a computer programme. The purpose of this thesis was to design, and develop a platform for the delivery of virtual patients following a game-based approach in the virtual world of Second Life®, investigating attitudes and gender differences among medical students at Imperial College London. Virtual worlds, such as Second Life®, are 3D spaces in which users meet and interact and in which learning opportunities can take place. Second Life® was selected for this study due to its popularity among UK Higher Education Institutions at the time of the development. The virtual patients’ activities were designed following game-based learning and pedagogic principles. The technical infrastructure was designed following a Component-Based System (CBS) structure as a distributed three tier architecture presenting information via a Heads-Up-Display (HUD). The first study carried out concentrated on the survey “My feelings when playing games” developed by Bonnano and Kommers (2008). The survey was comprised of 21 statements. Six statements related to the affective component, five statements are about perceived usefulness, six statements about perceived control and four statements about behavioral components. Two groups were involved, one accessing a virtual patient via Second Life® and the other via an e-module. This study involved 42 Year 3 undergraduate medical students (21 years old). The gender distribution of the respondents was 42.85% female (n = 18) and 57.14% male (n = 24). The tendency encountered in each group towards the different attitudinal components was analysed as well as gender-related attitudes. Both groups showed very similar results in relation to the Attitudinal Components. In general, females demonstrated a more positive attitude overall for the perceived usefulness component. Other studies looked at and contrasted, provided interesting thoughts and reflections on gender tendencies and game play. It was concluded that more inclusive and holistic studies in this area ought to be carried out in order to identify game play tendencies in professional-level simulation with adults at university level, which may counteract outdated perceptions about age and gender differences in game play. The second study described the use of the Nominal Group Technique (NGT) to assess students’ attitudes again. Two groups of undergraduate medical students (Yr 3, n=14) were invited to participate. The research question posed was: “In your opinion what are the advantages and disadvantages of learning in Second Life® compared with other methods?” The results provide a different perspective to the ones highlighted in the first study. Results from the first group focused on the learning experience highlighting its importance for clinical diagnosis as a structure for learning. The second group focused on the clinical exposure although they were ambivalent about the advantages of this type of delivery mode. In general, learners did not find the virtual patient activities challenging enough. The results of this thesis show that although a game-based learning approach was followed in the design of the virtual patient activities and interfaces, the repetitive linear presentation of the cases did not motivate the students enough, targeting only low-end Cognitive skills which may be more suitable for students in Year 1 and 2. The use of more challenging branching learning experiences, such as the ones developed by the PIVOTE authoring system are suggested for the delivery of virtual patients in clinical years. All the programming code used in the CBS has been released as open source, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 3.0 License, in order to stimulate other interested parties in the development of similar applications in the virtual world of Second Life®. / <p>Godkänd; 2011; 20111110 (andbra); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Genus och teknik/Gender and Technology Opponent: Professor Jan Gulliksen, School of Computer Scicence and Communication, Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan, Stockholm Ordförande: Professor Ulf Mellström, Centrum för genusforskning, Karlstads universitet/ Luleå tekniska universitet. Tid: Fredag den 16 december 2011, kl 13.00 Plats: F531, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

Based on four studies, this thesis aims to explore how to design auditory warning signals that can facilitate safer driving by operators of heavy goods vehicles. The first three studies focus on the relationships between certain characteristics of auditory warnings and various indicators of traffic safety. A deeper understanding of these relationships would allow system developers to design auditory signals that are better optimised for safety. The fourth study examines the opinions of both vehicle developers and professional drivers regarding warning attributes.One major conclusion is that meaningful warning sounds that are related to the critical event can improve safety. As compared with arbitrarily mapped sounds, meaningful sounds are easier to learn, can improve drivers’ situation awareness, and generate less interference and less annoyance.The present thesis also supports the view that commercial drivers’ initial acceptance of these sounds may be very high.Annoyance is an especially important aspect of warning design to consider; it can negatively influence driving performance and may lead drivers to turn off their warning systems. This research supports the notion that drivers do not consider that negative experience is an appropriate attribute of auditory warnings designed to increase their situation awareness. Also, commercial drivers seem to report, significantly more than vehicle developers, that having less-annoying auditory warnings is important in high-urgency driving situations. Furthermore, the studies presented in this thesis indicate that annoyance cannot be predicted based on the physical properties of the warning alone. Learned meaning, appropriateness of the mapping between a warning and a critical event, and individual differences between drivers may also significantly influence levels of annoyance.Arousal has been identified as an important component of driver reactions to auditory warnings. However, high levels of arousal can lead to a narrowing of attention, which would be suboptimal for critical situations during which drivers need to focus on several ongoing traffic events. The present work supports the notion that high-urgency warnings can influence commercial drivers’ responses to unexpected peripheral events (i.e., those that are unrelated to the warning) in terms of response force, but not necessarily in terms of response time.The types of auditory warnings that will be developed for future vehicles depend not only on advances in research, but also on the opinions of developers and drivers. The present research shows that both vehicle developers and drivers are aware of several of the potentially important characteristics of auditory warnings. For example, they both recognise that warnings should be easy to understand. However, they do disagree regarding certain attributes of warnings, and, furthermore, developers may tend to employ a “better safe than sorry” strategy (by neglecting factors concerning annoyance and the elicitation of severe startled responses) when designing high-urgency warnings.Developers’ recognition of the potentially important attributes of auditory warnings should positively influence the future development of in-vehicle systems. However, considering the current state of research regarding in-vehicle warnings, it remains challenging to predict the most suitable sounds for specific warning functions. One recommendation is to develop a design process that examines the appropriateness of in-vehicle auditory warnings. This thesis suggests an initial version of such a process, which in this case was produced in collaboration with system designers working in the automotive industry. / <p>Godkänd; 2011; 20111012 (andbra); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Teknisk psykologi/Engineering Psychology Opponent: Professor Daniel Västfjäll, Linköpings universitet Ordförande: Professor Håkan Alm, Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Onsdag den 7 december 2011, kl 10.15 Plats: F531, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

In the thesis I explore validation as a transformative practice in work by starting from four standpoints in the development of new practices for validation in Sweden. I explore the practices, i.e. what people do in work all the time, in their specific situation. In particular, attention is paid to how validation is about recognizing knowledge as competence in some official framework for recognition, which is constructed in the practices. The empirical basis in my study of the validation practices were the projects in: the Care Company, which was a private company in the field of care; the Technical Unit, which was a unit in public sector in the field of technique; the Industrial Company, which was a private company in the field of industry and technique; and the Geriatric Care, which was a municipal activity in the field of care. Interviews were carried out with the organisers of the arrangements, the accommodators of the education, participative women and men in the work situation, and participative women in the educational situation. The aim of the thesis is to understand, by describing and analyzing, the interwoven construction of gender, competence and validation. My general research questions are: how is validation of knowledge handled in working life?; how is competence constructed in the practices of validation?; and how is gender pervading the practices of validation? In particular I explore the following research questions: how are the validation practices shaped?; in which practices is it possible to recognize knowledge in validation?; which practices lead towards employed women's and men's participation in validation?; and how is femininity constructed as a competence in the practices of validation? By applying theories about working life I understand validation as concrete practices where competence and gender as differences in power is the result. Knowledge is transformed in work when people participate in validation. Competence is organised with material social relations as a basis and gender intertwines with the use of knowledge in the validation practices. Gender is studied on the level of social relations in terms of gendering hierarchies and divisions of labour but also at the level of subjectivity through the definitions of validation made by subjects. In particular I want to make validation visible as a practice for transformation of knowledge in work, from a gender and class perspective.The thesis has an empirical basis. I follow Dorothy Smith's feminist methodology, which means that the study starts from people's (women's) own ”voices” and definitions of validation in the concrete practices. Interviews were conducted, observations were undertaken, and documents were collected in two different overbridging projects. I have continuously analysed the material and have by an abductive approach identified themes, theories and drawn conclusions. To understand the practices, theories of gender, knowledge competence and validation in work are applied. In validation, human relations are rendered valuable, when service work is regarded as a part of the new idea that capitalism now comprises the whole life, so that tendencies of not measurable impact are also included. I discuss the participants' experience of validation in relation to earlier research.In the study I pay attention to the persistently male tendencies in the shaping of the validation practices, and I particularly look for opportunities open to women. At the same time as it is possible to make women's knowledge visible in validation, the work is also pervaded by traditional gender hierarchies, by the conduct of Scientific Management, and the introduction of new techniques to transform knowledge to competence. In the transformation it is the accommodators of the education, especially, who have developed reflexive practices of individual self-creation and group membership. Ideas about flexible management and development of work make space for participatory approaches in the validation. In the process new practices are shaped to transform knowledge as the participants support new ways of thinking, different methods and devices for motivation, mapping and information techniques in work. Validation does not serve every group in work in the same way and does not make it possible for every individual employee to develop their competence, in the value adding practices.In validation, the earlier relatively distinct separation between the fields of work and education becomes more blurred, and different understandings about gender are expressed in the validation practices. Validation in men's jobs is directed so that employees learn new knowledge, and validation in women's jobs is directed so that employees' prior knowledge is made visible. Men's jobs fit with the new public transformation of competence, whereas women's knowledge in caring cannot be developed in the validation process. People in work can validate specific knowledge that can challenge both gender and competence, but “the feminine” can not be transformed to general competence for the women in the practices of validation. The worth of femininity is both contradictory and complex. / I avhandlingen undersöker jag validering som omvandlande praktik i arbete från fyra ståndpunkter, i utvecklingen av nya praktiker för validering i Sverige. Jag undersöker praktikerna, dvs vad människor hela tiden gör i arbetet, i deras specifika situation. Särskilt uppmärksammas hur validering handlar om att erkänna kunskap som kompetens inom något officiellt ramverk för erkännande, som utformas i praktikerna. Den empiriska basen i min studie om valideringspraktikerna var projekten i: Vårdföretaget, som var ett privat företag inom området vård och omsorg; Tekniska enheten, som var en enhet i offentlig sektor inom området teknik; Industriföretaget, som var ett privat företag inom området industri och teknik; och Äldreomsorgen, som var en kommunal verksamhet inom området vård och omsorg. Intervjuer gjordes med arrangörerna av insatserna, utbildningsanordnarna i projekten, deltagande kvinnor och män i arbetssituationen och deltagande kvinnor i utbildningssituationen. Syftet med avhandlingen är att förstå den sammanvävda konstruktionen av genus, kompetens och validering. Mina övergripande forskningsfrågor är: hur hanteras validering av kunskap i arbetslivet?; hur konstrueras kompetens i validerings­praktikerna?; och hur genomsyrar genus valideringspraktikerna? Jag fördjupar mig särskilt i följande forskningsfrågor: hur utformas valideringspraktikerna?; i vilka praktiker är det möjligt att värdesätta kunskap i validering?; vilka praktiker leder till att anställda kvinnor och män deltar i validering?; och hur konstrueras kvinnlighet som kompetens i valideringspraktikerna? Genom att använda teorier om arbetslivet förstår jag validering som konkreta praktiker där kompetens och genus som maktskillnader är resultatet. Kunskap omvandlas i arbete när människor deltar i validering. Kompetens organiseras med materiella sociala relationer som grund och genus sammanflätas med användning av kunskap i valideringspraktikerna. Jag undersöker genus på nivån av sociala relationer i termer av genusskapande hierarkier och arbetsdelning men också på nivån av subjektivitet genom de definitioner om validering som görs av subjekt. Jag vill särskilt synliggöra validering som praktik för att omvandla kunskap i arbete, ur ett genus- och klassperspektiv.Avhandlingsarbetet har en empirisk grund. Jag följer Dorothy Smiths feministiska metodologi, som innebär att undersökningen börjar från människornas (kvinnornas) egna ”röster” och definitioner om validering i de konkreta praktikerna. Intervjuer och observationer gjordes, och dokument insamlades i två olika övergripande projekt. Jag har fortlöpande analyserat materialet och har genom ett abduktivt förhållningssätt hittat teman, teorier och dragit slutsatser. För att förstå praktikerna tillämpas teorier om genus, kunskap, kompetens och validering i arbete. I validering får mänskliga relationer ett värde genom att servicearbete betraktas som en del i den nya idén om att kapitalismen numera omfattar hela livet, så att även tendenser av icke mätbar inverkan ingår. Jag diskuterar deltagarnas upplevelse av validering i relation till tidigare forskning. I studien uppmärksammar jag tendenserna till de ihållande manliga strukturerna i utformningen av valideringspraktikerna, och söker särskilt möjligheter som är öppna för kvinnor. Samtidigt som det är möjligt att synliggöra kvinnors kunskap i validering, genomsyras arbetet också av traditionella genushierarkier, genom utövandet av rationell arbetsledning, och införandet av nya tekniker för att omvandla kunskap till kompetens. I omvandlingen har särskilt utbildningsanordnarna utvecklat reflexiva praktiker för relationer av individuellt själv-skapande och gruppmedlemskap. Idéerna kring flexibel styrning och utveckling av arbetet ger utrymme för deltagande förhållningssätt i valideringen. I processen utformas nya praktiker för att omvandla kunskap genom att deltagarna stödjer nytänkande, olika metoder och redskap för motivation, kartläggning och informationsteknik i arbete. Validering fungerar dock inte på samma sätt för alla grupper i arbete och gör det inte möjligt för varje individuell anställd att utveckla sin kompetens, i de värdeskapande praktikerna. I validering blir den tidigare relativt tydliga uppdelningen mellan områdena arbete och utbildning mer otydlig, och skilda förståelser av genus kommer till uttryck i praktikerna. Valideringen i mansjobben är inriktad mot att de anställda lär sig ny kunskap, och valideringen i kvinnojobben är inriktad mot att de anställdas tidigare kunskap synliggörs. Mäns jobb passar med den nya offentliga omvandlingen av kompetens, medan kvinnors omsorgskunskaper inte kan utvecklas i validerings­processen. Människor i arbete kan validera specifika kunskaper som kan utmana både genus och kompetens, men ”det kvinnliga” kan inte omvandlas till generell kompetens för kvinnorna i valideringspraktikerna. Värdet av kvinnlighet är både motsägelsefullt och komplext. / <p>Godkänd; 2011; 20111123 (aglu); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Arbetsvetenskap/Human Work Sciences Opponent: Professor Anita Mirjamsdotter, Linnéuniversitetet, Växjö Ordförande: Professor Elisabeth Berg, Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Fredag den 20 januari 2012, kl 10.00 Plats: F341, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

The present thesis investigated the effects of background noise or a long reverberation time in learning situations. All studies used spoken texts that were presented above the speech intelligibility threshold, but were degraded enough to make listening more effortful. The basic hypothesis for the whole project was that listening to speech in a bad acoustic environment should increase the cognitive load for the listener, which should impair memory of the text. In Paper I the auditory stimuli were lists of words and sentences that were degraded by a background noise. Paper II was a replication of the experiment from paper I, but the independent variable was changed from the level of the background noise to reverberation time. Paper III included two experiments where the stimulus material was 10 minutes lectures.Paper IV included two studies. The first experiment investigated whether serial recall performance is affected when words are presented in long reverberation time (Exp 1a). In experiment 1b word lists were presented in long or short reverberation time or with a background noise. The stimuli were recorded in one classroom with extremely good and one with very bad acoustic design. In experiment 2 word lists with many or few phonological neighbours were presented with long or short reverberation time. In all studies some measure of working memory capacity was included. Taken together, the overall results could be summarized in two sentences: Hearing what is said is a necessary but not a sufficient criterion for people to remember what is said, which means that spoken information should be heard without special effort, otherwise proper learning is jeopardized. No consistent relation was found between working memory capacity and the learning effect in the unfavorable listening conditions. / <p>Godkänd; 2010; 20100416 (roblju); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Teknisk psykologi/Engineering Psychology Opponent: Docent Mats E. Nilsson, Stockholms universitet Ordförande: Professor Håkan Alm, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Torsdag den 3 juni 2010, kl 14.00 Plats: F 436, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

The basis of individual differences in susceptibility to auditory distraction has been a research field largely ignored. The current work presents four studies demonstrating that individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) are related to the magnitude of auditory distraction. The first three reports showed that high WMC attenuates the effects of speech and aircraft noise on reading comprehension and prose memory. The fourth report showed that high WMC attenuates the power of unexpected sound stimulation to capture our attention, but not the interference from changing-state sound streams to seriation processes.Furthermore, the first and the second report showed that the capacity to exclude new, potentially relevant but ultimately irrelevant, materials from memory underlies the relationship between WMC and the effects of speech on reading comprehension/prose memory. Based on these results, a new perspective of WMC called the "sub-process view" was developed, according to which WMC is a compound of functionally distinct subprocesses: some of which are related to auditory distraction. Ten years ago it was not at all clear if cognitive-control processes play a role in auditory distraction, but the studies reported in this thesis strongly suggest that cognitive-control - as reflected in WMC -constitutes a fundamental basis of individual differences in susceptibility to auditory distraction. / <p>Godkänd; 2010; 20100407 (patsor); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Teknisk psykologi/Engineering Psychology Opponent: Professor Jerker Rönnberg, Linköpings universitet Ordförande: Professor Håkan Alm, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Fredag den 4 juni 2010, kl 09.00 Plats: F719J Bellsalen, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

Rapporten belyser skogsarbetets förändring i storskogsbruket under perioden 1900 – 2013 under inflytande av rationalisering och humanisering som förändringsprocesser. Utgångsläget var ett ytterst slitsamt, riskabelt och lågbetalt säsongsarbete i kyla och snö, med bortaliggning i undermåliga kojor. I periodens början fullbordades en spontan rationalisering som inletts i slutet av 1800-talet och som bestod av att effektivare handredskap – olika typer av sågar, barkspadar och hanteringsdon - ersatte yxan som universalredskap. Organiserad rationalisering av skogsarbetet kom igång först i slutet på 30-talet. Den hämtade då sin inspiration från industrin som vid det laget hade anpassat amerikanen F W Taylors rationaliseringskoncept till den svenska arbetsmarknaden och kulturen. Arbetsstudier blev grund för effektivisering av det manuella skogsarbetet och för en rättvisare lön. Men skogsbruket kom sedan att finna egna vägar, som ledde till en världsunik teknisk och organisatorisk utveckling med början på 1950-talet och kulmen kring 1990. Under de senaste två årtiondena har rationaliseringen i skogsbruket anslutit sig till ”mainstream” i näringslivets utveckling, som styrs allt mera av dels den globaliserade marknadens mekanismer samt dels ”Lean”, ett hopkok av amerikanska och japanska organisationskoncept, och med ”outsourcing” som främsta verktyg. Under perioden 1940-2005 utvecklades produktiviteten kraftigt, med särskilt stora språng 1960-75 och 1990-2005. Efter 2005 skedde en stagnation. Humaniseringen av skogsarbetet inleddes med provinsialläkaren Hasslers larm 1907. Starten blev trög men skogsarbetarnas boende och mathållning kom att förbättras på många håll fram till 1930-talets slut. Då blev humanisering en integrerad del av den systematiska rationaliseringen, vilket innebar radikala förbättringar av det manuella skogsarbetet. När mekaniseringen tog fart under 50- och 60-talet kom människan i produktionssystemet bort ett tag, vilket ledde till omtag på humaniseringsprocessen. Ergonomin utvecklades som redskap och som vetenskap. Från slutet av 70-talet till slutet av 90-talet blev humaniseringen, stödd av flera aktörer, åter en integrerad del av rationaliseringen, nu underbyggd av det ”sociotekniska” organisationskoncept som utvecklats av engelska och norska arbetsforskare. Arbetets organisation kom i fokus. Den totala humankvaliteten kulminerade åren kring 1990. Skogsarbetet nådde då en höjdpunkt vad gäller mångsidighet, kontaktrikedom, variation, självbestämmande, ansvar och uppmärksamhet. Sedan inleddes en viss avhumanisering. Humaniseringsaktörerna försvagades eller försvann. Marknadens ”osynliga hand” tog alltmera över utvecklingen. Humankvaliteten försämrades på en rad punkter som i huvudsak kan hänföras till organisationsmiljön – färre personliga kontakter, längre arbetsresor, sämre skiftformer, kortare framförhållning och sämre kvalitet i planeringen samt sänkt relativ lönenivå. Försämringarna kompenseras delvis av att maskinernas förarmiljö och driftssäkerhet förbättrats avsevärt, men generellt har skogsarbetet förlorat i attraktivitet. Historiken summeras utförligt i kapitel 11.I kapitlet 12 om framtidens arbetsliv nationellt och i skogsbruket hävdar författaren att det behövs ett tidsanpassat humaniseringskoncept av samma dignitet som det på 60-talet lanserade sociotekniska konceptet. En skiss på ett sådant ”socioekonomiskt” koncept presenteras, inklusive en begreppsapparat som gör anspråk på att vara innovativ, samt en rad åtgärdsförslag. Därvid beaktas lärdomar från det förgångna / <p>Godkänd; 2014; 20140114 (andbra); Nedanstående person kommer att disputera för avläggande av filosofie doktorsexamen. Namn: Bengt Ager Ämne: Arbetsvetenskap/Human Work Science Avhandling: Skogsarbetets humanisering och rationalisering från 1900 och framåt Opponent: Professor emeritus Göran Olsson, Högskolan Väst, Trollhättan Ordförande: Professor Jan Johansson, Avd för Arbetsvetenskap, Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle, Luleå tekniska universitet. Tid: Onsdag den 19 mars 2014, kl 13.00 Plats: F531, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>

This dissertation presents four experimental studies (in four papers) with the overall aim to investigate the effects of office noise on cognitive performance and restoration. In the first two papers the focus was on the effects of different sound levels (i.e., the mean level from all sound sources at an office, such as speech, phones, people walking) on performance, fatigue and stress. In the last two papers the focus was on the effects of background speech, as this has previously been shown to be the most disturbing noise source in open-plan offices. Paper I demonstrated decreased word memory performance, increased fatigue and motivational deficits when the background sound level increased by 12 dB, from 39 to 51 dB LAeq. Paper II showed that the sound level effects were more pronounced for individuals with a hearing impairment. Unexpectedly, no effects were found of acute noise exposure on the participant´s stress hormone levels (Paper I and Paper II).Regarding effects of irrelevant speech, Paper III showed that cognitive performance decreased as a function of background speech intelligibility, the higher the intelligibility depicted by the Speech Transmission Index (STI), the worse the performance. The results indicated that the STI-value must be less than 0.50, to avoid a negative influence on performance. Further, both Paper III and IV showed that performance is more impaired by background speech if the focal task requires episodic memory and rehearsal—such as word memory and information search. Interestingly, some tasks were insensitive for speech.The restorative effects of a break were addressed in Paper I and II (i.e., directly after the work sessions in noise). The break period differed in content between the participants. Paper I showed that a break with a nature movie with corresponding sound increased energy ratings compared to just listening to river sounds or office noise. Continued exposure to office noise gave the lowest ratings of motivation after the break. Paper II showed improved arithmetic performance and motivation after the break with a nature movie and decreased performance and motivation after continued noise exposure. For the hearing impaired participants, however, continued noise during the break increased motivation and performance, while the movie did not.Taken together, the current thesis demonstrates that open-plan office noise can have a negative impact on fatigue, motivation and performance. How much performance is impaired varies with the cognitive processes required by the tasks performed and hearing status. Moreover, continued noise exposure during a short break can further decrease motivation and subsequent performance. / <p>Godkänd; 2012; 20120831 (heljah); DISPUTATION Ämne: Teknisk psykologi/Engineering Psychology Opponent: Docent Mats Nilsson, Psykologiska institutionen, Stockholms universitet Ordförande: Professor Håkan Alm, Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Fredag den 23 november 2012, kl 10.30 Plats: F719J, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>