A comparative study of physical work load in Japanese and Swedish nursery school teachers

Comparisons were made of general and local physical work loads between two groups of 58 Japanese and 15 Swedish nursery school teachers. Heart rate, number of steps, rating of perceived exertion (RPE), frequency and time expended with respect to trunk flexion, sitting/kneeling, and lifting/carrying loads of 1 kg or more were monitored during working hours. The average percentage heart rate increase in the maximal heart rate range was lower in the Japanese than in the Swedish teachers. However, all parameters of local physical work load indicating musculoskeletal stress were higher in the Japanese than in the Swedish teachers. The RPE was slightly higher in the Japanese than in the Swedish teachers. These features of general and local work load in the Japanese teachers were typically observed among the teachers in charge of very young children (0-2 years). The Japanese teachers in charge of children aged 3-5 years, on the other hand, had similar levels of both general and local work load as the Swedish teachers in charge of classes comprising children of various ages (1-5 years). The physical work load measured in the present study was not sufficient to explain the difference in the magnitude of musculoskeletal problems for nursery school teachers in the two countries, and other factors should now be examined.