"Human factors and ergonomics (commonly referred to as human factors engineering or HFE) is the application of psychological and physiological principles to the engineering and design of products, processes, and systems."
Designing work environments and tasks to optimize worker performance, safety, comfort, and well-being.
Human factors principles: The underlying principles that guide human factors engineering, including perception, attention, cognition, and ergonomics.
Human factors standards and regulations: The rules and regulations that apply to human factors engineering, such as OSHA standards and ANSI/HFES standards.
Cognitive engineering: The study of how human thought and decision-making affects design, including issues such as fatigue, stress, and workload.
Human-computer interaction: The design of computer systems that are user-friendly and minimize errors, including usability testing, user interfaces, and feedback systems.
Anthropometry and ergonomics: The study of human body dimensions and work postures to optimize comfort, safety, and productivity.
User-centered design: A design process that focuses on the needs and preferences of users, incorporating their feedback throughout the design process.
Task analysis and job design: The process of breaking down tasks into smaller components to improve performance, efficiency, and safety.
Usability testing: The evaluation of products or systems from the perspective of end-users, often using metrics such as efficiency, effectiveness, and user satisfaction.
Human error analysis: The study of human factors that lead to errors and accidents, including factors such as stress, workload, and distraction.
Design for safety: The principles and practices for designing safe and reliable systems, including hazard analysis, risk assessment, and safety-critical systems.
Human factors in healthcare: The study of how human factors affect patient safety and healthcare outcomes, including topics such as medication errors, medical device design, and patient communication.
Human factors in transportation: The study of how human factors affect transportation safety and efficiency, including topics such as driver behavior, vehicle design, and transportation infrastructure.
Industrial design: The process of designing products, systems, and environments to meet human needs and preferences, incorporating principles such as aesthetics and user experience.
Human factors in sustainability: The study of how human factors affect sustainability and environmental impact, including topics such as energy efficiency, waste reduction, and sustainable design.
Organizational design and culture: The study of how organizational structures, processes, and culture affect human performance and behavior, including topics such as leadership, teamwork, and communication.
Anthropometry: The study of human body dimensions, proportions, and physical characteristics.
Biomechanics: The study of how the human body moves, including muscle and skeletal mechanics.
Cognitive engineering: The study of mental processes like perception, memory, attention, and decision making, and their influence on human behavior.
Ergonomics: The study of the interactions between people and their physical work environment, including how tools and equipment are designed and used.
Human-computer interaction: The study of the design and evaluation of computer-based systems, software, and interfaces to optimize their ease of use.
Human reliability analysis: The study of the human error of personnel or operators in complex systems, and the methods to mitigate, minimize, or eliminate those errors.
Training and development: The study of how people learn and acquire new knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and the methods and strategies used to train and educate them.
Visual and auditory displays: The study of how information is presented visually or through sound, including the design of warning signals, alarms, and other displays.
Workplace design: The study of how to design and organize workplaces to optimize productivity, comfort, and safety of the workers.
"The primary goals of human factors engineering are to reduce human error, increase productivity and system availability, and enhance safety, health and comfort with a specific focus on the interaction between the human and equipment."
"The field is a combination of numerous disciplines, such as psychology, sociology, engineering, biomechanics, industrial design, physiology, anthropometry, interaction design, visual design, user experience, and user interface design."
"Ergonomics (or human factors) is the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design to optimize human well-being and overall system performance."
"Human factors engineering is relevant in the design of such things as safe furniture and easy-to-use interfaces to machines and equipment."
"Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent repetitive strain injuries and other musculoskeletal disorders, which can develop over time and can lead to long-term disability."
"Human factors and ergonomics are concerned with the 'fit' between the user, equipment, and environment or 'fitting a job to a person' or 'fitting the task to the man'."
"To assess the fit between a person and the used technology, human factors specialists or ergonomists consider the job (activity) being done and the demands on the user; the equipment used (its size, shape, and how appropriate it is for the task), and the information used (how it is presented, accessed, and changed)."
"Ergonomics draws on many disciplines in its study of humans and their environments, including anthropometry, biomechanics, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, industrial design, information design, kinesiology, physiology, cognitive psychology, industrial and organizational psychology, and space psychology."
"Human factors research employs methods and approaches from these and other knowledge disciplines to study human behavior and generate data relevant to previously stated goals."