Design engineers do not need psychologists - Discuss and critically evaluate this statement

Table of Content

Table of Figures

0 Introduction

1 Human factors/ ergonomics (HF/E)
1.1 Historical facts
1.2 General facts
1.3 Human-machine-interaction

2 Design of the work environment/Working conditions
2.1 Temperature
2.2 Illumination
2.3 Noise

3 Discussion - Conclusion

4 Appendixes

5 Reference and bibliography list

Table of Figures

Figure 1.1: Comparison between visual and auditory displays

0 Introduction

Human factors, also called ergonomics are the field which is linking engineering and psychology. Basically, since World War II the importance of this field increased and engineers and psychologists have been working together more closer to improve the working place and working conditions.

This paper is discussing the need of psychologists within the engineering sector. Due to the fact that design engineers have a wide range of work there will be a closer look at the human-machine system as well as the design of the working place as two examples of the field of design engineers.

However, at the end of this paper there will be a conclusion if there is a necessarily for psychologists in the designing sector and how engineers can contribute from them.

1 Human factors/ ergonomics (HF/E)

1.1 Historical facts

The beginning of HF/E is not really definite but most psychologists date the beginning with F. Taylor’s studies of optimal use of shovel at Bethlehem steel in 1898. A further example of the development of human factors is Frank and Lilian Gilbreath’s study of bricklaying in 1911. Their goal was to eliminate all unnecessary motion to made workers more productive within having them work harder.

However, until 1940 the design of machines or systems was mainly the field of engineers. Human needs and comfort were just ignored. This changed with World War II and the military. Pilots were crashing with their machines to the ground and psychologist should find out why. Nowadays, that phenomenon is called “human error” and the main reason for the crashes was that the airplane controls were not standardised. “Before World War II, it was assumed that people could eventually learn whatever they were given if they were trained properly. Since World War II, the field of HF/E has blossomed” (Wogalter) and is still enhancing on a continuous basis.

1.2 General facts

Basically, in the past human factors was used as a term in the United States and ergonomics was used in Europe which nowadays is merging. That means everyone working in this field knows what is meant by human factors as well as ergonomics. Other terminologies also used are engineering psychology or applied experimental psychology.

However, all these terms are dealing with the field of linking psychology and engineering design. That means this science or field “is multidisciplinary and benefits from the input of experts from domains such as psychology, engineering, computer science, biomechanics, medicine, and others.” (Wogalter) Within human factors the main philosophy is that all products or systems which are made for people’s usage “should reflect the goals of user satisfaction, safety, and usability.” (Wogalter) Due to the fact that in the field of HF/E human needs and capabilities are at the focus of designing technological systems the aim is to find the best solution to link human abilities and technology.

1.3 Human-machine-interaction

A human-machine-interaction occurs when human and machine operate together to accomplish a task. That means neither part is of value without the other.

Raymond Curtis Graeber, who is Boeing’s chief engineer for human factors, as cited by Murray (1998) states that “engineers are experts on the actual design […] but not always on how the human fits into that. Psychologists know how to integrate the human properly into the design, thereby improving safety and performance efficiency.”

Nowadays machines, computers or systems become more and more important in the daily working and everyday life. However, if they are not designed properly or too complex for an average human’s comprehension they can lead to frustration or even accidents. At this point psychology plays an important role for helping design engineers basically with three main aspects: Design of controls, displays, and alerts.

Most machines require human control which is achieved through a number of ways such as wheels, pushbuttons, levers, mice, keyboards or voice controls. All these controls have the same main function to transmit information to some device, mechanism or system.

Psychologists have the opinion that control should imitate the movement it produces. For example if a wheel will be turned right the movement of the machine or system should also go in this direction. The identification of controls should be clear and easy to understand so that the user knows what to do with certain components. That fact is also important if there are combined controls such as on-off and volume. Different controls can be used for different task in a human-machine system because they differentiate each other in terms such as “the speed with which an operator can use the control to make necessary adjustments; the accuracy with which an operator can use the control; the physical effort required to use the control; and the range of response that the control will accommodate”. (Jewell 1998) A hand wheel for example has a poor speed but a good accuracy and in contrast a pedal has a good speed but a poor accuracy. That means designers have to think carefully where to implement which control.

The second main aspect in a human-machine system is displays which have to be designed properly. Basically, there are two different types of displays: Visual displays and auditory displays. Main differences between both types are shown in figure 1.1.

illustration not visible in this excerpt

Figure 1.1: Comparison between visual and auditory displays

Referring to Jewell (1998) “the issue in designing any display is how best to represent information to the human component of an operator-machine system.” Display designers have to pay attention to different factors which affect for example the ease and speed of a display. Another important aspect is the placement of a display because mostly displays are too high for a lot of people to read so that they are useless. Sometimes they are also too close to the human which operates the machine. These errors can be reduced by getting help from psychologists. In these cases psychologists are looking at questions such as:

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