The effects of work pace on within-participant and between-participant keying force, electromyography, and fatigue

A laboratory study was conducted to determine the effects of work pace on typing force, electromyographic (EMG) activity, and subjective discomfort. We found that as participants typed faster, their typing force and finger flexor and extensor EMG activity increased linearly. There was also an increase in subjective discomfort, with a sharp threshold between participants' self-selected pace and their maximum typing speed. The results suggest that participants self-select a typing pace that maximizes typing speed and minimizes discomfort. The fastest typists did not produce significantly more finger flexor EMG activity but did produce proportionately less finger extensor EMG activity compared with the slower typists. We hypothesize that fast typists may use different muscle recruitment patterns that allow them to be more efficient than slower typists at striking the keys. In addition, faster typists do not experience more discomfort than slow typists. These findings show that the relative pace of typing is more important than actual typing speed with regard to discomfort and muscle activity. These results suggest that typists may benefit from skill training to increase maximum typing speed. Potential applications of this research includes skill training for typist.