The Changing Job Tasks and Environment of Designers Using Computer Graphic Equipment Lorraine Justice Departmentof Industrial Design The Ohio StateUniversity 128 North Oval Mall 380 Hopkins Hall Columbus, Ohio 43212 Abstract Computers are rapidly changing the way designers work, the way design offices are structured and workflow stages for production in the design office. Designers who operate a computer in a design fii may fiid themselves less involved in the other phases of creative design process, such as design conceptualization and client contact. This limited involvement in other areas of the creative job process can lead to job specialization and possible job dissatisfaction. In additon to job specialization, the majority of designers experience physical ailments when computer use is extended over four hours on a daily basis over a period of at least 1 year. Most of these complaint areas are eye, back, neck, shoulders, wrist, general fatigue and headache. The research conducted consisted of a national survey of designers and design managers. Design offices chosen for this survey are those that produce graphic design, audio-visual presentations, desktop publishing design and packaging. The survey instrument used was a questionnaire containing both closed and open-ended questions concerning job description, job satisfaction, and physical ailments. The questionnaire was sent to 500 designers and to 500 design managers in large and small cities, in large and small firms across the United States. Two hypotheses were presented: 1. Designers prefer other design duties in addition to computer operation, 2. Designers operating a computer graphic system for four or more hours per day, on a daily basis will experience physical discomfort attributed to computer use. The overall rate of return for valid questionnaires was 22%. The majority of respondents use the Macintosh computer and have l-3 years of computer graphic experience. Sixty-one percent of the designers use the computer for four or more hours per day. Fifty-three percent of the designers prefer to use the computer for four to six hours per day. Fifty-six percent of the design respondents wanted increased design responsibilities in their job description. The job tasks mentioned most often by designers were as follows: concept sketches, client interaction, storyboarding and training. Seventy-seven percent of the design respondents recorded physical ailments of some kind. Some respondents recorded more than one ailment. Of the 77% recording complaints, 67% recorded eye complaints, 27% recorded back complaints, and 18% recorded neck complaints. Other complaints were recorded in the areas of hand/wrist, headaches, shoulders, and general fatigue. Ninety-nine percent of the design respondents believed that computers enhanced their productivity. Sixy-eight percent of the design respondents believed that computers allowed them to be creative. Eighty-nine percent of the designers recorded high satisfaction with the role of computers in their design jobs, and eighty-four percent recorded high satisfaction with their overall job satisfaction. In conclusiton, the &sign respondents enjoy using a computer in the design process but would like an increase in additional job duties in other areas of the design process such as the conceptual stages and client interaction. It is recommended that design offices be restructured to restrict computer use to four hours a day or schedule significant breaks from computer use so physical complaints can be alleviated and job task variety can be incorporated into the job design. The data for the respondents who did record physical ailments (78%). the data sets were broken down further into hours of preference for computer use. Of the designers recording physical complaints, eighty-five percent worked four or more hours with a computer graphic system. It would seem that the longer hours a designer uses a computer on a daily basis, the more likely they will have physical complaints. While both hypotheses were proven, it should be noted that some designers, even though they recorded physical ailments such as eye strain and fatigue were requesting more hours of computer use. Also, the high number of physical complaints recorded, in addition to the preference for variety of job tasks, leaves a question as to the long term job satisfaction of designers using computer graphic equipment for the majority of their work day. It is the researcher’s contention that the design community needs to move toward limiting computer use when physical problems manifest themselves and complaints arise. Design managers need to use this this situation as an opportiunity train others on the computer equipmenf diversify tasks for designers, and reap the creative benefits of satisfied designers. - -

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