What Am I Sitting On? User Knowledge Of Their Chair Controls

Abstract

This study tested user knowledge and the use of the controls for their work chairs for a volunteer sample of 1004 office workers who were randomly selected for survey from 23 different companies and who were sitting on one of a total of 60 different ergonomic office chairs. Results showed that with the exception of seat height and armrest adjustment, only a small minority of users had accurate knowledge about the controls on their chair. Even when users correctly identified a chair control, less than 50% said they had ever used that control. There was no effect of ergonomics chair training on user perceived chair comfort. Those who had received previous training for an ergonomic chair reported less frequent musculoskeletal discomfort than those with no training or with specific training on their current. Users who sat on chairs with 3 or fewer controls reported significantly less frequent musculoskeletal discomfort than those sitting on more complex chairs with 4 or more controls. Overall, the results show that up to two thirds of users knew about their controls for adjusting seat height, seat depth and armrest height, but most users were unaware of controls for other functions. The implications for chair design are discussed.