Determinants of retirement timing expectations in the United States and Australia: a cross-national comparison of the effects of health and retirement benefit policies on retirement timing decisions

Data from the U.S. Health and Retirement Study (N = 2,589) and the Australian Household Income and Labour Dynamics survey (N = 1,760) were used to compare the macro-level policy frameworks on individual retirement timing expectations for pre-baby boomers (61+ years) and early baby boomers (45 to 60 years). Australian workers reported younger expected age of retirement compared to the U.S. sample. Reporting poor health was more strongly associated with younger expected retirement age in the United States than in Australia. Cohort and gender differences in the United States were found for the effect of private health insurance on younger expected age at retirement. Our results draw attention to how cross-national comparisons can inform us on the effects of policies on retirement expectations among older workers.     

Motivators for Seeking Gambling-Related Treatment Among Ontario Problem Gamblers

A random digit dialing telephone survey was used to interview 8,467 adults in Ontario, Canada. The NODS-CLiP was used to identify a representative sample of 730 gamblers (54.3% male, mean age 45.3 years) with possible past year gambling problems in order to explore factors that might affect disordered gamblers’ motivators for seeking gambling-related help. A final sample of 526 gamblers provided useable data on possible reasons for and barriers to seeking help, awareness of services, self-perception of gambling problems and experience with help-seeking. Financial and relationship issues were the most frequently volunteered motivators. However, over two-thirds of the respondents could not think of a reason for seeking help. Gamblers who had self-admitted or more severe problems, who knew how to get help, who were employed and had more education, and who identified possible barriers to seeking help were more likely to suggest motivators, especially financial ones. More research is recommended on gamblers’ trajectory towards recognition of a gambling problem, the process of overcoming specific barriers to treatment, and the role of social advantage (e.g., education and employment), in order to devise educational campaigns that will encourage earlier help-seeking among disordered gamblers.     

Distractions N' Driving: video game simulation educates young drivers on the dangers of texting while driving

The proliferation of portable communication and entertainment devices has introduced new dangers to the driving environment, particularly for young and inexperienced drivers. Graduate students from George Mason University illustrate a powerful, practical, and cost-effective program that has been successful in educating these drivers on the dangers of texting while driving, which can easily be adapted and implemented in other communities.     

The relationship between heart rate as an indicator of work hardness and results of dynamometry

Heart rate is associated with work hardness and increase linearly with its increasing. In the average of energy consumption, heart rate measurement is simple but non-accurate method for calculation of work hardness. Our purpose in this research was to evaluate the relationship between heart rate and dynamometry results with hypothesis of work hardness effectiveness on the human power. This study was conducted on 102 porcelain workers. Participants were selected randomly. The research tools include stethoscope, the dynamometer. Heart rate, and pinch, grip, and back-leg-chest force were measured and relationships between variables were analyzed with Pearson correlation test and independent T-test using Spss 16 software. The average heart rate of participants were 4.11 ± 1.79 with minimum 60 and maximum 120. The average force of pinch, grip, and back-leg-chest were 8.9 ± 3.20, 4.2 ± 4.5 and 9.36 ± 6.55, respectively. Work hardness for 3.86% of workers were light, 7.12% were moderate and 1% were heavy. Pinch, grip, and back-leg-chest force relation with heart rate were not significant (r=0.01, p=0.85), (r=-0.03, p=0.74), and (r=0.05, p= 0.59), respectively. There was no correlation between heart rate and work hardness. So we can't use the dynamometry results to determine of work hardness.     

Perceptual load in central and peripheral regions and its effects on driving performance: advertizing billboards

A broadened version of the perceptual load model was utilized to explore systematically the influence of four variables on driver's behavior: a. levels of load on the road; b. levels of load at the sides of the road; c. event's initial location (on the road vs. at the sides of the road); and d. the presence and size of advertizing billboards. 18 participants participated in two experimental sessions in a driving simulator. One of the sessions contained advertizing billboards and the other session did not. The results indicated that billboards can have a considerable effect on various aspects of driving like the time required responding to a potentially dangerous event or simply the number of accidents occurring during driving, but importantly the effect of billboards on driving was modulated by the levels of perceptual load.     

Co-variation in time between near-far accommodation of the lens and trapezius muscle activity

Visual strain and discomfort may contribute to the generation of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among e.g. computer workers. A positive correlation on a group level between eye-lens accommodation and trapezius muscle activity has been reported. In this study we investigated the possibility of a direct, fast, connection between lens accommodation and trapezius muscles activity. The subjects focused alternately on Near and Far targets, with a mean switch time of 5 s, through four different lenses. The cross-correlation, R(tau) was computed, between the time signals of accommodation and electromyography (EMG) from 23 subjects. In the overall mean R(tau) of 736 curves, a small but significant correlation peak (0.019) with a delay (of the EMG signal) of about 0.3 s, revealed a small common component in the two signals. Among the lenses, the positive lens (3.5 D), showed the highest correlation peak (0.040). The correlation may be caused by a direct "hard-wired" connection between the ciliary and trapezius muscles. But it could also be caused indirectly by the subject's need for a more stable head in a more demanding visual task. The latter is supported by the result that the correlation was the highest in the positive lens condition. The present correlation is however weak and it has probably a low practical importance.     

Eye- and neck/shoulder-discomfort during visually demanding experimental near work

Frequent use of digital information technology has an impact on eye- and neck/shoulder-discomfort. Studies with cross sectional and intervention design indicate an association between the two symptom categories. Still, whether visually demanding near work, per se, contributes to increased neck/shoulder discomfort remains a question of debate. The aim of this laboratory study was to assess if visually demanding experimental near work affects eye- and neck/shoulder-discomfort when the posture was adjusted for comfort and no movements were allowed. Thirty-three healthy subjects performed a visually demanding computer screen task (viewing task) under four different optical lens conditions: binocular -3.5 D and monocular -3.5 D, +3.5 D and ± 0 D. During the experiment subjects were seated in an office chair (with neck support) that was individually adjusted for comfort. At baseline and after each viewing task, subjects reported their perceived eye- and neck/shoulder discomfort on Borg's CR-10 scale. Results show a significant increase of eye discomfort between baseline and the first viewing task, and a significant increase in neck/shoulder discomfort from baseline throughout the first three viewing tasks. Further analysis is required to determent whether the neck/shoulder discomfort was induced by the demanding near work or the static posture, or a combination.