Noguchi and colleagues studied the experience of “perching.” As the researchers explain, “Potential alternatives for conventional sitting and standing postures are hybrid sit-stand postures (i.e. perching)…participants completed 19 1-min static trials, from sitting (90°) to standing (180°), sequentially in 5° trunk–thigh angle increments. The perching phase was determined to be 145–175° for males and 160–175° for females…Chair designs aimed at reducing the lower limb demands within 115–170° trunk–thigh angle may improve the feasibility of sustaining the perched posture…Perching can improve lumbar posture at a cost of increased lower limb demands, suggesting potential avenues for chair design improvement.”
Mamiko Noguchi, Michel Glinka, Graham Mayberry, Kimihiro Noguchi, and Jack Callaghan. 2019. “Are Hybrid Sit-Stand Postures a Good Compromise Between Sitting and Standing.” Ergonomics, vol. 62, no. 6, pp. 811-822, https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2019.1577496
Sally Augustin, PhD, a cognitive scientist, is the editor of Research Design Connections (www.researchdesignconnections.com), a monthly subscription newsletter and free daily blog, where recent and classic research in the social, design, and physical sciences that can inform designers’ work are presented in straightforward language. Readers learn about the latest research findings immediately, before they’re available elsewhere. Sally, who is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, is also the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture (Wiley, 2009) and, with Cindy Coleman, The Designer’s Guide to Doing Research: Applying Knowledge to Inform Design (Wiley, 2012). She is a principal at Design With Science (www.designwithscience.com) and can be reached at sallyaugustin@designwithscience.com.