Skip to main content

A Study on the Impact of Prolonged Sitting on Computer Workstation Users’ Well-Being and Productivity: Punjab State Perspective

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Productivity with Health, Safety, and Environment (HWWE 2019)

Part of the book series: Design Science and Innovation ((DSI))

Included in the following conference series:

  • 240 Accesses

Abstract

Computer workstation often involves sitting for long hours to get the jobs done. Studies have shown that prolonged seating in the workplace leads to musculoskeletal discomforts, increased risks of cardiovascular diseases and overweight. In this study, a questionnaire-based self-feedback survey was undertaken so as to study the various relationship of prolonged sitting and computer workstation setups with regards to overweight, the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and perceived comfort levels and productivity of workers. Data were then analyzed using IBM SPSS (version 22). It was found that prolonged sitting time has significant impacts on overweight, lower levels of comforts and productivity among workers. There is also a significantly high prevalence of musculoskeletal discomforts among workers who are subjected to prolonged seating working hours. The result shows that different workstation setup affects different parts of the user body. It is recommended that a flexible sit-stand table should be adopted to reduce negative impacts.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 149.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. J.G.Z. Van Uffelen et al., Occupational sitting and health risks: a systematic review. Am. J. Prev. Med. 39(4), 379–388 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. J.M. Jakicic, Physical_activity_and_weight_r.PDF, vol. 73, pp. 21–36 (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  3. D.W. Dunstan, G.N. Healy, T. Sugiyama, N. Owen, ‘Too much sitting’ and metabolic risk—has modern technology caught up with us? US Endocrinol. 5, 29–33 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. S. Al-, The association between watching television and obesity in children of school-age in Saudi Arabia. J. Fam. Community Med. 20(2), 83 (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  5. G.N. Healy et al., Objectively measured sedentary time, physical activity, and metabolic risk. Diabetes Care 31(2), 369–371 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. W.K. Mummery, G.M. Schofield, R. Steele, E.G. Eakin, W.J. Brown, Occupational sitting time and overweight and obesity in Australian workers. Am. J. Prev. Med. 29(2), 91–97 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. H. Bak, L. Petersen, T.I.A. Sørensen, Physical activity in relation to development and maintenance of obesity in men with and without juvenile onset obesity. Int. J. Obes. 28(1), 99–104 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. A. Shariat, J.A. Cleland, M. Danaee, M. Kargarfard, B. Sangelaji, S.B.M. Tamrin, Effects of stretching exercise training and ergonomic modifications on musculoskeletal discomforts of office workers: a randomized controlled trial. Brazilian J. Phys. Ther. 22(2), 144–153 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. R.K. Moom, L.P. Sing, N. Moom, Prevalence of Musculoskeletal disorder among Computer Bank Office Employees in Punjab (India): a case study. Procedia Manuf. 3, no. Ahfe, 6624–6631 (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  10. C. James et al., Musculoskeletal discomfort and use of computers in the university environment. Appl. Ergon. 69(February), 128–135 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. M.Y. Lin, A. Barbir, J.T. Dennerlein, Evaluating biomechanics of user-selected sitting and standing computer workstation. Appl. Ergon. 65, 382–388 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. P. Wennberg et al., Acute effects of breaking up prolonged sitting on fatigue and cognition: a pilot study. BMJ Open 6(2), 1–9 (2016)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. T.A. Alkhajah, M.M. Reeves, E.G. Eakin, E.A.H. Winkler, N. Owen, G.N. Healy, Sit-stand workstations: a pilot intervention to reduce office sitting time. Am. J. Prev. Med. 43(3), 298–303 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. J. Hall, L. Mansfield, T. Kay, A.K. McConnell, The effect of a sit-stand workstation intervention on daily sitting, standing and physical activity: protocol for a 12 month workplace randomised control trial. BMC Publ. Health 15(1), 1–9 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. K.I. Proper, E. Cerin, W.J. Brown, N. Owen, Sitting time and socio-economic differences in overweight and obesity. Int. J. Obes. 31(1), 169–176 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. M.Y. Lin, P. Catalano, H.T.H. Chan, P. Health, J.T. Dennerlein, A psychophysical protocol to develop ergonomic recommendations for sitting and standing workstations. Hum. Factors Ergon. Soc. 58(4), 574–585 (2016)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. I. Kingma, J.H. van Dieën, Static and dynamic postural loadings during computer work in females: sitting on an office chair versus sitting on an exercise ball. Appl. Ergon. 40(2), 199–205 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. M. Scharoun, J.S. Kaufman, B.M. Popkin, P. Gordon-Larsen, Obesity, race/ethnicity and life course socioeconomic status across the transition from adolescence to adulthood. J. Epidemiol. Community Health 63(2), 133–139 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  19. A. Hedge, E.J. Ray, Effects of an electronic height-adjustable worksurface on computer worker musculoskeletal discomfort and productivity. Proc. Hum. Factors Ergon. Soc. Annu. Meet. 48(8), 1091–1095 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. N. Gupta, C.S. Christiansen, D.M. Hallman, M. Korshøj, I.G. Carneiro, A. Holtermann, Is objectively measured sitting time associated with low back pain? A cross-sectional investigation in the NOMAD study. PLoS ONE 10(3), 1–18 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. A. Fenety, J.M. Walker, Short-Term effects of workstation exercises on musculoskeletal discomfort and postural changes in seated video display unit workers. Phys. Ther. 82(6), 578–589 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. K.M. Gallagher, T. Campbell, J.P. Callaghan, The influence of a seated break on prolonged standing induced low back pain development. Ergonomics 57(4), 555–562 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. K. Skyberg, K.R. Skulberg, W. Eduard, E. Skåret, F. Levy, H. Kjuus, Symptoms prevalence among office employees and associations to building characteristics. Indoor Air 13(3), 246–252 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. S.K. McCrady, J.A. Levine, Sedentariness at work: how much do we really sit. Obesity 17(11), 2103–2105 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. A.A. Thorp et al., Prolonged sedentary time and physical activity in workplace and non-work contexts. Int. J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 9(1), 128 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. G. Kar, A. Hedge, Short-Term Typing Performance and Discomfort, pp. 460–464 (2016)

    Google Scholar 

  27. D. Ankrum, K. Fraser, A. Plooy, R. Burgess-Limerick, The influence of computer monitor height on head and neck posture. Int. J. Ind. Ergon. 23(3), 171–179 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. L.L. Van Deursen, J. Patijn, J.R. Durinck, R. Brouwer, J.R. Van Erven-Sommers, B.J. Vortman, Sitting and low back pain: the positive effect of rotatory dynamic stimuli during prolonged sitting. Eur. Spine J. 8(3), 187–193 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. J.G. Young, M.B. Trudeau, D. Odell, K. Marinelli, J.T. Dennerlein, Wrist and shoulder posture and muscle activity during touch-screen tablet use: effects of usage configuration, tablet type, and interacting hand. Work 45(1), 59–71 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Kholi, D., Singh, L.P. (2022). A Study on the Impact of Prolonged Sitting on Computer Workstation Users’ Well-Being and Productivity: Punjab State Perspective. In: Singh, L.P., Bhardwaj, A., Iqbal, R., Khanzode, V. (eds) Productivity with Health, Safety, and Environment. HWWE 2019. Design Science and Innovation. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7361-0_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7361-0_5

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-16-7360-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-16-7361-0

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics