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Objective. This article proposes a comprehensive literature review of past works addressing hearing protection device (HPD) comfort with the aim of identifying the main sources of variability in comfort evaluation. Methods. A literature review of study samples was performed: documents were hand searched and Internet searched using PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Professional, Scopus or Google search engines. While comfort constructs and measurement methods are reviewed for both earplugs and earmuff HPD types, results and analyses are provided for earplugs only. Results. The literature shows that the multiple sources of the perceived comfort measurement variability are related to the complexity of the concept of comfort and to the various physical and psychosocial characteristics of the triad 'environment/person/earplug', which differ from one study to the other. Conclusions. Considering the current state of knowledge and in order to decrease comfort measurements variability, it is advised to: (a) use a multidimensional construct of comfort and derive a comfort index for each comfort dimension;, (b) use exhaustive and valid questionnaires; (c) quantify as many triad characteristics as possible and use them as independent or control variables; (d) assess the quality of the earplug fitting and the attenuation efficiency.

Objective: This article presents a comprehensive literature review of past works addressing Hearing Protection Devices (HPD) comfort and to put them into perspective regarding a proposed holistic multidimensional construct of HPD comfort.Design: Literature review.Study samples: Documents were hand searched and Internet searched using "PubMed", "Web of Science", "Google Scholar", "ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Professional", "Scopus" or "Google" search engines. While comfort constructs and measurement methods are reviewed for both earplugs and earmuff types, results and analyses are provided for the earplug type only.Results: This article proposed a multidimensional construct of HPD comfort based on four dimensions: physical, functional, acoustical and psychological. Seen through the prism of the proposed holistic construct of HPD comfort, the main comfort attributes of earplugs have been identified for each comfort dimension.Conclusions: The observed lack of consensus on the definition of HPD comfort in the scientific community makes it difficult to prioritise the importance of comfort attributes yet necessary for future design of comfortable earplugs.

IntroductionThe return to the labour market after retirement is an increasing phenomenon in the North American population. It is the subject of a growing number of studies, whose conclusions seem inconsistent. As returning to working life after retirement is not neutral for individuals, the aim of this article is to present the protocol of a scoping review about its effects on older workers’ health.Methods and analysisThe methodology of Arksey and O’Malley, including the recommendations of Levacet aland Daudtet alwill be used. The process is composed of seven steps, from the identification of the research question, to the planning of knowledge transfer activities. Documents dealing with retirees returning to work in connection with health will be explored and analysed using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.Ethics and disseminationApproval has been obtained for the consultation step of the protocol (ethics board of the Centre intégré universitaire en santé et servicessociaux de la Capitale Nationale, project #2019-1753). The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols checklist will be used to support transparency and guide translation of findings. Findings will be shared with various stakeholders involved in older workers’ health. Findings will also be disseminated in workshops, peer-reviewed journals and conferences.

Workers with low back pain (LBP) may benefit from wearing a lumbar belt (LB), but the biomechanical and psychological mechanisms involved are not fully understood. Two types of flexible LB (extensible and non-extensible) were compared to a control condition (no LB) regarding pain-related (pain, fear of pain and catastrophizing) and biomechanical (range of motion - ROM) outcomes related to two tasks: maximal trunk flexion-extension and manual material handling. Healthy controls and participants with LBP were tested. During both tasks, the two LBs reduced the lumbar ROM in participants with LBP in the same way as healthy controls. This was observed even at the beginning of the trunk flexion movement, allowing generalization to many work tasks, that is to say tasks performed with small or deep trunk flexion. The two LBs reduced pain, fear of pain and catastrophizing in subjects with LBP. That may help a gradual re-exposure to physical work activities (disability prevention perspective), or maintaining these activities (secondary prevention perspective), following a LBP episode.

Purpose This systematic review aimed at identifying the common psychosocial factors that facilitate or hinder the return to work (RTW) after a sick leave due to common mental disorders (CMDs), cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), or cancers (CAs). Methods We conducted a review of reviews searching 13 databases from 1994 to 2016 for peer-reviewed, quantitative, cohort studies investigating factors influencing RTW after a CMD, CVD, or CA. Then, for each disease we identified additional cohort studies published after the date of the latest review included. Data were extracted following a three steps best-evidence synthesis method: the extraction of results about each predictor from studies within each single review and in the additional papers; the synthesis of results across the reviews and additional papers investigating the same disease; and the synthesis of results across the diseases. Results The search strategy identified 1029 unique records from which 27 reviews and 75 additional studies underwent comprehensive review. 14 reviews and 32 additional cohort studies met eligibility criteria. Specific predictors of RTW with different levels of evidence are provided for each disease. We found four common facilitators of RTW (job control, work ability, perceived good health and high socioeconomic status), and six barriers of RTW (job strain, anxiety, depression, comorbidity, older age and low education). Conclusion This is the first review to systematically analyze commonalities in RTW after CMDs, CVDs, or CAs. The common factors identified indicate that the RTW process presents many similarities across various diseases, thus supporting the validity of a cross-disease approach.

The main purpose of this prospective study is to validate the construct of psychosocial well-being (PSWB) for people with severe mental disorders enrolled in Supported Employment (SE) programs. This paper also aims to assess the impact of job acquisition on PSWB after obtaining competitive employment. A two-phase study approach was used and 231 individuals with severe mental disorders enrolled in SE programs who took part in both phases. The shortened versions of the Psychological Well-Being Scale (Keyes et al. in J Personal Soc Psychol, 82(6):1007-1022, 2002; Ryff and Keyes in J Personal Soc Psychol 69(4):719-727, 1995) and the Social Well-Being Scale (Keyes in Soc Psychol Q 61(2):121-140, 1998) were used. The PSWB's multidimensionality construct was confirmed. The results of repeated measure ANOVA analyses revealed that job acquisition, as well as, being involved in a work-seeking process increase the PSWB of people with severe mental disorders. Employment specialists might find clinical utility in using this validated tool for assessing PSWB in their clients with severe mental disorders. In a recovery oriented approach to psychiatric services and SE programs, clinicians and employment specialists should continue to encourage their clients in their work integration process even though they may not all obtain competitive employment quickly.

In recent years, early retirement has attracted increasing attention in the literature. Using a larger Italian-Spanish sample, this study examines the push and pull factors related to early retirees' mental health status, as well as the moderating effects of perceived self-efficacy on the relationships between reasons for early retirement and mental health. Analyses revealed that poor retirees' mental health is positively correlated to the push factor Pressure from Employer and negatively related to the pull factor Pursue Own Interests. Thus, mental health status is better for Italian retirees than for their Spanish counterparts. The Italian sample shows that Pursue Own Interests was negatively related to poorer mental health particularly under the low self-efficacy condition. Findings suggest that mental health depends on both the motivating reasons that lead people to retire early and the personal resources available to them to manage this psychosocial transition. © 2013 Colegio Oficial de Psicologos de Madrid. All rights reserved.

In Canada and other countries, the costs related to health care and loss of work productivity due to mental disorders exceed several billion dollars annually. The main purpose of this chapter is to help readers to better understand the relationship between mental health and work conditions. First, the authors present the economic burden of mental disorders in the workplace with particular attention to presenteeism, work absences, and long-term disability. Second, the individual, organizational, and environmental determinants of mental health problems of employees in the workplace are presented. Finally, the individual, organizational, and programmatic factors of return to work for people with common mental disorders are presented, as well as the significant factors of work reintegration of people with severe mental disorders. The presentation of the linked determinants of work participation and work functioning is supported with theories to explain the combination of factors affecting the work outcomes of different populations. Also, services/programmes and interventions designed to facilitate work participation of people with mental health problems or mental disorders are described. Finally, the authors suggest preventive interventions in the workplace as well as future avenues of research.

Using a sample of 514 French late-career managers representing a variety of occupations and organizations, we investigated the relations among perceived HRM practices, organizational commitment, and voluntary early retirement. We found that the provision of training opportunities was associated with the most favorable outcomes. It was related to higher affective and high-sacrifice commitment, lower lack of alternatives commitment, and reduced voluntary early retirement. On the other hand, we found that flexible working conditions and the assignment of older workers to new roles (for example, mentor or coach) did not have the expected positive effects. In addition, our results highlight the importance of disentangling the components of continuance commitment, as high-sacrifice commitment was associated with reduced likelihood of voluntary early retirement, while lack of alternatives commitment had the opposite effect. These findings suggest that voluntary early retirement should be incorporated as a major outcome in future organizational behavior research. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.