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Vol. 4 No. 2 (2024): Volume 4, Issue 2, Year 2024

Articles

Relationship between Learning Environment Design and Musculoskeletal Disorders in Learners

  • Sylvia Adu,
  • George Adu,
  • Alfred Asante Boadi,
  • Kwaku Antwi
Sylvia Adu
Department of Forest Resources Technology, Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana
George Adu
Department of Interior Design and Materials Technology, Kumasi Technical University, Kumasi, Ghana
Alfred Asante Boadi
Department of Building Technology, Kumasi Technical University, Kumasi, Ghana
Kwaku Antwi
Department of Wood Science and Technology, Akenten Appiah-Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Development, Kumasi, Ghana
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.34256/ijk2425

Published 15-08-2024

Keywords

  • Anthropometric measurements,
  • Classroom ergonomics,
  • Musculoskeletal disorders,
  • Posture,
  • Anthropometric measurements, Classroom ergonomics, Musculoskeletal disorders, Posture, Students

How to Cite

Adu, S., Adu, G., Boadi, A. A., & Antwi, K. (2024). Relationship between Learning Environment Design and Musculoskeletal Disorders in Learners. International Journal of Kinanthropometry, 4(2), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.34256/ijk2425

Copyright (c) 2024 Sylvia Adu, George Adu, Alfred Asante Boadi, Kwaku Antwi

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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Abstract

Introduction: Students spend most of their day at school sitting in their classroom furniture which is not quite the right size for students. This can be uncomfortable and even lead to back pain, leg cramps, and other problems. Method: Students’ body size for good posture while sitting, include popliteal to floor height, elbow to seat height, thigh thickness, sitting height, buttock to popliteal length, buttock to knee length, elbow to elbow breadth, the width of bitrochanter, subscapular height, and sitting shoulder height, and one standing is stature. Similarly, dimensions of chair-with-table, like seat height, the upper edge of the backrest, seat width, seat depth, table length, table width, table height, backrest height, and footrest currently used in the classroom were taken.  The study compared students' anthropometry data with the furniture dimension data to obtain a match or mismatch between them with the help of standard mismatch equations. Results: The study reported that the mean body measurements of males are larger than females except for the width of bitrochanter. Seat width, seat depth, backrest height, and the upper edge of the backrest showed high mismatch percentages in students when patronising chairs. Table length reported high mismatch percentages among students. Conclusion: Using the users’ body sizes for furniture design will reduce musculoskeletal disorders and improve users’ sitting position. The recommended dimensions in furniture design will ergonomically fit students’ anthropometric measurements.

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