Nature aside, the world in which we live should be designed for us, from everyday products like scissors and chairs to complex systems in avionics, medicine and nuclear power applications. Now more than ever, technological advances continue to increase the range and complexity of tasks that people have to perform. As a discipline, human factors psychology (ergonomics) therefore has an increasingly important role to play in ensuring that the human user's physical characteristics, cognitive abilities and social needs are taken into account in the development, implementation and operation of products and systems.
In this book, Jan Noyes provides a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of human-machine interaction and the design of environments at work. Focusing on topics relevant to user-centred design, she includes coverage of the capabilities and limitations of humans, human-machine interactions, work environments, and organizational issues. Health and safety issues underpin a large amount of work on the human factors of design, and these are addressed fully throughout the book. Each chapter includes case studies that demonstrate the real-world relevance of the points being made and concludes with a list of key points.
Although aimed primarily at advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers in organizational and occupational psychology, this book will also be of relevance to students on engineering, computing and applied psychology/human factors programmes.
Biography
Jan Noyes is currently Graduate Dean of Science at the University of Bristol. In 1999 she was awarded the prestigious Otto Edholm medal for her contributions to applied research in ergonomics.
'This work makes a valuable contribution to the Human Factors literature. It is a practically orientated book that presents comprehensive coverage of the relevant material ... this book will be invaluable to academics, students, to ergonomics practitioners and to related professionals' - Elizabeth Hellier, University of Plymouth
'On the whole, I did enjoy this book. The structure is good, with summaries and case studies for all chapters; and in the main it does fulfil its aim of providing an introduction to this area particularly for those on occupational psychology courses.' - Lynda Holyoak, University of Central Lancashire, in The Psychologist
'The author's aims, to cover the topics of 'human-machine safety' and 'design of environments and work: health and safety', are achieved in an informative and readable way. Throughout, the text contains amusing, but constructive, referenced quotes about design and ergonomics/human factors. The case studies are up to date and most informative, providing good snippets of information for both students and practitioners, making one realise how frequently a problem is the result of the lack of application of ergonomics/human factors. There is an abundance of references to check out further details on all topics, and each chapter finishes with a helpful summary of key points. The book is certainly a useful source for students, academics and practitioners alike and is clearly of great relevance to individual in the areas of human factors and ergonomics, applied psychology, engineering, and computing.' - Charlotte Brace, Loughborough University, in Ergonomics Abstracts
