Table 1 The characteristics of some perceptual-observational instruments
Instrument | Authors | Type | Year | Target population | Items | Risk levels | Validity and reliability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scoring scales for observational assessment | Malchaire et al. | Observational and perceptual tool | 1999 | Male and female workers | Air temperature, humidity, thermal radiation, air movements, workload, clothing, and opinion of the worker | Without risk level | Those have been not evaluated. |
Observational checklist for heat stress risk assessment | Bethea and Parsons | Observational and perceptual tool | 2002 | Male and female workers | Air temperature, radiant temperature, humidity, air velocity, metabolic rate, and clothing. | Without risk level | Those have been not evaluated. |
Work safety evaluation of hot and humid environments | Zheng et al. | Observational and perceptual tool | 2011 | Male and female workers | Work nature, work intensity, work duration, temperature, humidity, airflow velocity, heat radiation intensity, seniority structure, safety training, and personal protection. | Four risk levels | Those have been not evaluated. |
Instrument | Authors | Type | Year | target population | Items | Risk levels | Validity and reliability |
Basic thermal risk assessment | Corleto et al. | Observational, perceptual, and measuring tool | 2013 | Male and female workers | Sun exposure, hot surface, exposure period, confined space, task complexity, climbing, up/down stairs or ladders, distance from cool rest area, distance from drinking water, permeability of clothing, understanding of heat strain risk, air movement, respiratory protection, acclimatization, metabolic work rate, and apparent temperature. | Three risk level | Those have been not evaluated. |
Heat strain score index | Dehghan et al. | Observational and perceptual tool | 2015 | Male workers | Air temperature, surface temperature, air humidity, air movement, air condition, confined space, work location, physical activity, type of clothing, material of clothing, color of clothing, personal protective equipment, sweating rate, body posture, fatigue intensity, discomfort intensity, thirsty intensity, and clinical signs. | Three risk level | The content validity of this tool was confirmed. Cronbach’s coefficient (α) was calculated by 0.91. |