ABSTRACT
Ergonomic research has made significant progress in identification of biomechanical (physical) risk factors for work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) and in development of intervention strategies to reduce these exposures. This research may have contributed to the observed reduction in WRMSD rates in the second half of the 1990s. However, despite broad agreement on biomechanical risk factors and control strategies, the reduction has been disappointingly small. This suggests the presence of other causal factors not susceptible to intervention techniques focused solely on biomechanical risks. Particularly over the past decade, the ergonomics research community has thus devoted increasing attention to psychosocial risk factors associated with the organization of work. This article addresses these factors. It has four aims:
O Clarify the confusing terminology that has evolved in this field.
