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Cognitive functioning is a relevant work and health related topic, however, validated methods to assess subjective cognitive complaints (SCC) at work are lacking. We introduce the Cognitive Function at Work Questionnaire (CFWQ) for measuring SCC in occupational settings. 1-year follow-up data of 418 employees from a Finnish public media service company was analyzed. Participants completed web-based CFWQ, cognitive tests and a broad set of questionnaires for evaluating depression, anxiety, insomnia, daytime sleepiness, burnout, stress, mental job burden, work ability, cognitive errors, and perceived health. The factor analysis yielded a model with the CFWQ subdomains: Memory, Language, Executive Function, Speed of Processing, Cognitive Control and Name Memory. The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha =.87) and the test-retest constancy (ICC =.84) reflected good reliability. Correlation between the CFWQ and cognitive errors at work ranged from.25 to.64 indicating adequate concurrent validity. Employees with depression, insomnia and burnout symptoms had higher (p

Background Cognitively straining conditions such as disruptions, interruptions, and information overload are related to impaired task performance and diminished well-being at work. It is therefore essential that we reduce their harmful consequences to individual employees and organizations. Our intervention study implements practices for managing the cognitive strain typical to office work tasks and working conditions in offices. We will examine the effects of a cognitive ergonomics intervention on working conditions, workflow, well-being, and productivity. Methods/design The study is a stratified cluster randomized trial. The clusters are work units, for example, teams or offices. The four participating organizations entered a total of 36 clusters, and we invited all 1169 knowledge employees of these units to participate. We randomly allocated the clusters into an intervention group (cognitive ergonomics) or an active control group (recovery supporting). We invited an additional 471 participants to join a passive control group only for baseline and follow-up measurements, with no intervention. The study consists of a baseline survey and interviews and observations at the workplace, followed by an intervention. It starts with a workshop defining the specific actions for the intervention implementation stage, during which we send task reminder questionnaires to all employees to support behaviour change at the individual and team levels. The primary outcome measure is perceived frequency of cognitive strain from working conditions; the secondary outcome measures include subjective cognitive load, well-being, workflow/productivity, and cognitive stress symptoms. Process evaluation uses the quantitative and qualitative data obtained during the implementation and evaluation phases. The baseline measurements, intervention phase, and end-of-treatment measurements are now complete, and follow-up will continue until November 2019. Discussion There is a need to expand the research of cognitive strain, which poses a considerable risk to work performance and employee well-being in cognitively demanding tasks. Our study will provide new information about factors that contribute to such strain. Most importantly, the results will show which evidence-based cognitive ergonomic practices support work performance in knowledge work, and the project will provide concrete examples of how to improve at work. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03573674. Registered 29 June 2018.

Aviation maintenance (AM) represents safety critical work and has procedures for safety management. However, sometimes, the modeling of safety critical parts of this work may not be sufficiently concrete for evaluating safety risks in practice. The AM company we studied lacked concrete methods for modeling the most safety critical parts of its work and for utilizing this knowledge in occupational health services (OHS) and safety management. We modeled the safety criticality of six of its tasks using interviews, work process analysis, the Brain Work Index, Work Observation, and HF tool. We summarized the results as a 3D model, and held workshops involving managers, operative, HR and quality assurance personnel, and OHS. We utilized systemic and collaborative orientation, mixed methods and participative development. As a result, the AM company improved its mastery of safety criticality by including new procedures in OHS processes, developing work processes, and modifying recruiting processes.

This workshop proposal "How to involve users in government systems procurement" aims at gathering together researchers and practitioners who study and participate in information system procurement and development. These include systems for public services in several sectors including health and social care, education, public library, public transportation, etc. The competitive setting of public procurement means that public services are developed with tight constraints on productivity and efficiency. On the other hand services are often targeted to citizens and other large audiences. Thereby, usability should often be of absolutely high level.