International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 72 (2019) 173–179

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International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ergon

Eye symptoms and reading abilities of computer users subjected to visually T

impaired direct glare
Susanne Glimnea,∗, Cecilia Östermanb
a
Unit of Optometry, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Box 8056, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 104 20, Stockholm, Sweden
b
Kalmar Maritime Academy, Faculty of Technology, Linnaeus University, SE, 391 82, Kalmar, Sweden

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Computer work is a visually demanding task associated with adverse eye symptoms. Frequent use of digital
Visual ergonomics displays is known to cause a deterioration of the so-called binocular control. Direct glare further reduces the
Discomfort glare capacity for binocular coordination during computer work, leading to reduced reading ability and increased eye
Disability glare symptoms.
Visual fatigue
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different luminance levels of direct glare on bino-
Reading performance
Mental fatigue
cular eye movement control and reading ability in a computer work environment.
Sixteen participants with normal binocular vision performed equal reading tasks in a balanced study. Three
controlled lighting conditions of direct glare (2000, 4000 and 6000 cd/m2) were tested, in addition to no glare.
After each trial, the participants answered survey questionnaires regarding their understanding of the text, as
well as their subjective experience of workload and perceived vision. Horizontal fixation disparity (FD) was
measured before and after the reading tasks to evaluate binocular eye movement control.
When comparing the responses of visual experience, a significant difference in reported eye symptoms was
found between lighting conditions. Based on the variation (SD), a significant difference was found within mean
values of repeated measurements of horizontal FD and a significantly higher variation in a comparison of initial
FD values measured during lighting conditions of no glare, to final measured values in all three glare conditions.
Reading ability was found to be significantly negative affected with the adversity of lighting conditions.
This study supports the contention that binocular eye movement control is reduced caused by direct glare.
Even lower degree of disability glare caused eye symptoms. The results establish the argument that working with
flat screens raises visual demands.

1. Introduction visual system. When working with computers the eyes need to con-
verge. A clear image of the screen should be projected on the retina of
We spend more time working in front of computer screens. Frequent the eyes, either through accommodation or by using correction. If the
use of digital displays contributes to a deterioration of the so-called eyes must make increased efforts to adjust for a clear retinal image, the
binocular control since most of the work occurs in a static two-di- intensity of muscle activity in orbicularis oculi (Klamm et al., 2015) and
mensional (2D) visual environment – working with a flat screen trapezius increases (Richter et al., 2011; Schiøtz Thorud et al., 2012;
(Glimne et al., 2015b). It is well known that computer work for long Zetterberg et al., 2015). Glare exposure has recently been shown to
periods of time is likely to lead to the development of a clinical syn- increase musculoskeletal load (Mork et al., 2018). Even lower degrees
drome called computer vision syndrome (CVS) (Klamm et al., 2015; of retinal blur may cause impaired performance and visual discomfort,
Rosenfield, 2011). CVS relates to the combination of eye and visual and people with more eye problems are more likely to suffer from
problems due to high visual demands. A previous study have shown musculoskeletal disorders (Hemphälä et al., 2012). Further, several
that use of large scale table top is correlated to higher discomfort and studies performed over a long period of time have demonstrated an
visual fatigue compared to use of a laptop (Binfeng et al., 2011). If association between visual discomfort and musculoskeletal problems
computer work is combined with other visually impairing factors, bi- regarding neck and shoulders (see for instance Aarås et al., 2005;
nocular control is further reduced, resulting in an increased load on the Horgen et al., 2005; Wahlström et al., 2004; Wiholm et al., 2007).

∗
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (S. Glimne), [email protected] (C. Österman).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2019.05.005
Received 30 November 2018; Received in revised form 17 April 2019; Accepted 13 May 2019
Available online 22 May 2019
0169-8141/ © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
S. Glimne and C. Österman International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 72 (2019) 173–179

Visual demanding tasks that involves cognitive demands, such as Table 1

sustained attention, memory and concentration, results in a lower blink Balanced repeated measurements combined in a Graeco-Latin-Square design for
frequency. This may affect the tear film and lead to eye-related dis- testing of conditions with no glare and three different luminance levels.
orders such as dryness, soring eyes and redness (Helland et al., 2008). Participant Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4
This occurs especially in a more upward gaze direction, above 19–21°
while the blink frequency is further reduced. The presence of dry eyes is 1 NG: S1-L1-S2 G40: S3-L2-S4 G20: S5-L3-S6 G60: S7-L4-S8
2 NG: S4-L2-S3 G60: S2-L3-S1 G20: S8-L4-S7 G40: S6-L1-S5
significantly elevated with increasing age (Stapleton et al., 2015). In
3 NG: S1-L3-S6 G60: S2-L2-S5 G20: S3-L1-S8 G40: S4-L4-S7
various studies, the prevalence of eyestrain among computer users has 4 NG: S5-L4-S2 G40: S6-L3-S1 G20: S7-L2-S4 G60: S8-L1-S3
been found to be between 31 and 57 per cent (Bhanderi et al., 2008; 5 G20: S2-L1-S6 G40: S3-L4-S7 NG: S4-L3-S8 G60: S1-L2-S5
Han et al., 2013; Mocci et al., 2001; Portello et al., 2012; Sanchez- 6 G20: S7-L2-S3 G60: S6-L1-S2 NG: S5-L4-S1 G40: S8-L3-S4
7 G20: S3-L3-S6 G60: S4-L4-S5 NG: S1-L1-S8 G40: S2-L2-S7
Roman et al., 1996).
8 G20: S5-L4-S4 G40: S6-L1-S3 NG: S7-L2-S2 G60: S8-L3-S1
Eyestrain due to vergence and accommodation mechanisms, i.e. 9 G40: S4-L1-S6 G20: S1-L4-S7 G60: S2-L3-S8 NG: S3-L2-S5
binocular coordination, is referred to symptoms such as headache, sore 10 G40: S7-L2-S1 NG: S6-L1-S4 G60: S5-L4-S3 G20: S8-L3-S2
eyes, diplopia (double vision) and blur (Portello et al., 2012; Sheedy 11 G40: S5-L3-S8 NG: S6-L4-S7 G60: S1-L1-S4 G20: S2-L2-S3
et al., 2003). A reduced visibility, e.g. from inappropriate lighting de- 12 G40: S7-L4-S6 G20: S8-L1-S5 G60: S3-L2-S2 NG: S4-L3-S1
13 G60: S6-L1-S8 G20: S1-L2-S3 G40: S2-L3-S4 NG: S5-L4-S7
sign with indirect or direct glare, will reduce the visibility of the task
14 G60: S3-L2-S1 NG: S8-L3-S6 G40: S7-L4-S5 G20: S4-L1-S2
and/or the image on the retina. This glare will add further stress on the 15 G60: S7-L3-S8 NG: S5-L2-S6 G40: S3-L1-S4 G20: S1-L4-S2
visual system (Jainta et al., 2011). Glare is caused when the eyes are 16 G60: S6-L4-S5 G20: S8-L3-S7 G40: S2-L2-S1 NG: S4-L1-S3
exposed to a stronger light than they are set for and may originate from
artificial lighting, sunshine or daylight through windows, or as reflec- NG: No glare |G20: Glare 2000 cd/m2 |G40: Glare 4000 cd/m2|G60: Glare
tions from high-gloss surfaces. According to an example in Anshel 6000 cd/m.2.
S1–S8: Short IReST texts 1 to 8 |L1-L4: Long IReST texts 1 to 4.
(2005), a computer workplace may have luminance ranges from 80 to
120 cd/m2 for a light background (screen); 2500–12 000 cd/m2 from
present study was to investigate the effect on binocular eye movement
the window, depending on the sky is cloudy or sunny, and be equipped
control and reading ability, i.e. reading eye movements, when in-
with luminaires ranging from 1000–10 000 cd/m2.
troducing different luminance levels of direct glare in a computer work
Glare can be divided into two main types, discomfort glare (psy-
environment. In addition, participants were asked to assess their
chological) and disability glare (physiological). Both types may arise
reading comprehension, and their perceived experience of the varying
from direct light or indirectly reflected light. Discomfort glare is more
lighting conditions during the test.
common in the light sensitivity caused by light differences in the field of
view. Glare can directly obstruct visual ability, and indirectly cause
increased mental strain (Garzia, 1996). 2. Material and methods
In computer work the central visual field will only contain 2D sti-
mulation and hence the visual system lacks one source of information 2.1. Study design and procedure
for the fine vergence control and accommodation mechanisms needed
to avoid diplopia. This will increase the load of the visual system and The study employed a balanced repeated-measurements design. As
may induce adverse eye symptoms. illustrated in Table 1, four lighting conditions, eight short and four
Fixation disparity are small horizontal and/or vertical misalignment longer texts were combined in a Graeco-Latin-Square design to avoid
of the eyes. It is a phenomenon of normal binocular vision and exists test order effects and thereby enable evaluation of the lighting designs
when there is oculomotor imbalance. Normally and in good working presented. The design included a within-subject repeated-measurement
conditions, these small misalignments is often compensated for by the experimental design limiting the effects of variance on the results
visual system through binocular coordination (Pickwell et al., 1987b). caused by the participants’ performance. Hence, the study design
Fixation disparity is a well-known sign of stress on the vergence system, adopted considered the fatigue that arises during the final sessions of
and the measurement of alternations in fixation disparity as a means of such prolonged visually demanding near work.
detecting stress has been described in scientific literature since mid- The experiment was performed in a room without windows. The
1900s (e.g. Ogle, 1958; Pickwell et al., 1987a). surrounding area in the room had an average illuminance level of 450
In relation to reading ability, Glimne et al. (2013) showed that bi- ( ± 75) lx and an average luminance level of 125 ( ± 45) cd/m2.
nocular eye movement control in terms of alternations in horizontal Four different lighting conditions were tested: no glare; and lumi-
fixation disparity was reduced when performing computer tasks in nance levels of 2000 cd/m2 ( ± 485); 4000 cd/m2 ( ± 550); and
conditions of direct glare. Reading ability is dependent on binocular eye 6000 cd/m2 ( ± 595). The luminance was measured along the entire
movement control and falls along a continuum. Evaluation of the width of the luminaire using a perpendicular angle to the luminaire. A
physiological effects of various glare conditions during computer work ceiling luminary was used in front of the subject at a distance of 100 cm
can be done by assessing the digital reading behaviour. Trauzettel- (turned up 80° towards the subject at a vertical angle from eyes of 10°).
Klosinski et al. (2012) developed a tool for standardized assessment of The fluorescent tube used was GE Lighting F36W 1M/T8/840/
reading performance (IReST). The tool consists of multiple equivalent POLYLUX (cool white). In order to adjust luminance level between test
texts for repeated measurements that allow for comparisons across orders, measurements were made from where the eyes were placed
languages. By using the IReST tool, it was shown that reading eye during test periods.
movements were negatively affected in direct glare when performing
computer tasks. Higher levels of glare resulted in decreased reading 2.2. Participants
speed due to longer fixation durations and saccade rates per second
(Glimne et al., 2015a). The sample consisted of sixteen participants recruited among op-
Given the fact that computer work weakens the binocular eye tometry students studying at the Karolinska Institutet. The participants
movement control caused by the flatness of the screen, it is fair to as- were made up by 15 women and 1 man between 19 and 45 years of age
sume that a work environment with a suboptimal lighting design will (mean 30.5 ± 7.0). All were asymptomatic, free of ocular pathology,
increase visual requirements and thus increase workload over time had no history of ocular treatment, and took no medication with known
(Fallahi et al., 2016). effect on visual acuity and/or binocular vision.
Based on this assumption and previous research the purpose of the The participants achieved at least 0.0 LogMAR visual acuity (20/20

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Fig. 1. Each trial followed the same procedure, initiated with preparations and calibrations, followed by FD test, reading of short and longer IReST texts, a second FD
test, and concluded with the participants answering the CISS-T and RTLX survey questionnaires.

Snellen equivalent) and had stereo acuity with the TNO (random-dot) (1) a short readability-controlled text of 146 words;
stereo test of 60 s of arc or better. (2) a longer newspaper text of about 800 words with readability index
Ethical approval was granted by the Regional Ethical Review Board between 39 and 43 (Björnsson, 1968);
in Stockholm and written and informed consent was obtained from all (3) a second readability-controlled text.
participants. The study adhered to the tenets of the Helsinki declaration
(WMA, 2018). The readability-controlled texts and the longer newspaper texts
were presented left-justified in 12-point sans-serif font (Arial) on single
page. Texts were presented on a white background with black letters at
2.3. Data collection a luminance of 188 ( ± 10) cd/m2.
Eye movement recordings were analysed in two steps: (1) fixations
Fig. 1 illustrates an overview of the trial procedure for each parti- were detected; (2) categorized movements between the fixations were
cipant. Luminance measurements of were performed with a Hagner detected. Fixations were defined as periods when the eye was within
luminance meter (Model S2). Fixation disparity was measured initially 1.5° from a cumulative midpoint for at least 100 ms (i.e. gaze kept
and immediately after performing the reading task for all four light stabilized in the fovea). Movements between fixations were categorized
conditions using a high-resolution LCD screen (Eizo FlexScan™ S1721) by length and direction. Movements of less than 6.3° (movements
with a background luminance of 150 ( ± 10) measured on white area. within parafovea) were classified as saccades if the movements went in
Initially, the participants were asked to position themselves in front the reading direction (forward/down), otherwise as regressions.
of the screen to perform repeated digital fixation disparity (FD) tests. Movements longer than 6.3° were categorized as forward sweep, re-
The participant's head was restrained by the use of a chin and forehead verse sweep, sweep upward or downward sweep.
rest during all periods of testing. The chin and forehead rest were po- Finally, the participants moved back to the screen to perform re-
sitioned and adjusted so that the subject's eyes were perpendicular to peated FD tests to finish the session.
the top of the computer screen at a distance of 60 cm with a downward
gaze of approximately 19–22° (Fig. 2).
After initial preparation and calibration of equipment, FD tests was 2.4. Survey questionnaire
done with red/green separated nonius lines as a dichoptic vernier
alignment task similar to a Sheedy disparometer or the instrumentation After each reading session, the subjects answered questions to assess
used for FD measurements by Ogle and Prangen (1951, 1953), and the reading comprehension. This was followed by the CISS-T questionnaire
computerized method used by Jaschinski (1998). The nonius lines were to evaluate visual experience and eye symptoms (Convergence
monocularly separated when wearing red/green filters. Insufficiency Symptom Survey) (Borsting et al., 2003), and the Raw TLX
Secondly, participants were asked to reposition themselves in front (RTLX, a modified NASA-TLX) questionnaire on workload (Hart, 2006)
of an additional computer screen. During the test procedure of the four to evaluate participants’ subjective experiences.
lighting conditions, all subjects were reading on a Tobii eye tracker The questions about visual experience (Table 2) were answered on a
(T120, LCD screen) without interruption (Glimne et al., 2015a). The five-digit descriptive scale 0–4, corresponding to: (0) Never; (1) Rarely;
head were positioned and adjusted so that the subject's eyes were at a (2) Sometimes; (3) Often; (4) Always. Questions on experienced
distance of approximately 65 ( ± 15) cm with a downward gaze of workload were answered in a 10-degree Visual Analog Scale (VAS; low
approximately 15–20°. An initial calibration was done before the (0) to high (10)). The questionnaire consists of six subscales corre-
reading task was started including distance and gaze angle adjustments sponding to independent bunch: Mental, Physical, and Temporal (time
(e.g. infrared sensors). The subjects were asked to silently read three pressure) Demands, Frustration, Effort, and Performance. The built-in
texts consecutively (Trauzettel-Klosinski et al., 2012) (Fig. 2). premise is that combinations of these 6 dimensions are probably to
represent the “workload” experienced by the participants reading on a

Fig. 2. Illustration of the settings when measuring horizontal fixation disparity with the participant's head positioned with a chin and forehead rest.

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Table 2 Table 3
Questionnaire about vision experience (CISS-T) answered on a scale 0 (never) Mean and standard deviation (SD) of correct answers (%) of the comprehension
to 4 (always). questions in different lighting conditions.
Eye symptoms Other eye-related symptoms No glare 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2

Tired eyes Headaches Mean 70.0 66.9 66.2 61.9

Uncomfortable eyes Feel sleepy SD ± 22.1 ± 24.2 ± 25.6 ± 25.1
Hurting eyes Lose concentration
Double vision Difficult remembering tasks read
Visual objects are blurred Read slowly
the lighting conditions (p = 0.61).
Sore eyes Lose place regarding the visual tasks
Pulling feeling around eyes Re-read the same information
When comparing reading speed (words per minute, WPM) in all
Words move, jump or float lighting conditions the results showed no significant difference.
However, analysed reading eye movements under the four lighting
conditions showed significant differences in fixation durations. Fixation
computer screen in different lighting conditions. The RTLX instrument durations increased with the adversity of the lighting conditions.
has eliminated the NASA-TLX weighting process analysing the subscales Further, pairwise comparisons showed a significant shorter fixation
individually and as an overall workload (OW) represented by a com- duration (p= < 0.0009) in the lighting condition of no glare reading
bination (Hart, 2006). the first IReST text compared to the lighting condition of 6000 cd/m2
Every sequence of different lighting condition lasted until the vo- when reading the final IReST text. The mean and standard deviation for
lunteer had completed the reading tasks. The period of reading was all measurements of reading eye movements under the different
usually finished after about 10 min and answering the questionnaires lighting conditions are shown in Table 4 (first IReST texts) and Table 5
took about 3 min (in total 68 ± 2 min). A non-glossy black surface was (last IReST texts).
placed on the table to avoid uncontrolled surface reflection (Fig. 3). Visual experience scores (CISS-T) were not normally distributed.
Analysis show a significant difference between lighting conditions
2.5. Statistical analysis (p= < 0.0001). Pairwise comparisons between lighting condition of
2000 cd/m2 and 6000 cd/m2 showed a significant difference
A repeated-measures ANOVA with Tukey were used (InStat; Graph- (p = 0.0128) regarding the experiences of hurting eyes. Moreover,
Pad Software Inc., San Diego, CA, USA) to analyse and compare hor- symptoms of tired eyes (i.e. visual fatigue) were found to increase with
izontal fixation disparity (FD) in terms of reading ability and binocular the adversity of the lighting conditions but were not scored significantly
eye movement control. Further, One-way ANOVA was used to analyse different. The mean and standard deviation for the most scored aspects
vision experience and workload in the varying lighting conditions. For of vision experience regarding the impact of glare under the different
correlation a linear regression model was used. lighting conditions can be seen in Table 6.
Effort and mental load were perceived as the most prominent work
3. Results load. A comparison between lighting conditions showed a significant
difference in mental work load (p < 0.0001). Pairwise analysis showed
As illustrated in Table 3, the participants reading comprehension significant differences between the lighting condition of no glare and
scored the highest mean value (70% correct answers) during conditions 4000 cd/m2 (p = 0.0027), and 6000 cd/m2 (p = 0.0001). There were
of no glare, and the lowest (62%) when subjected to the highest lu- no significant differences in overall workload between lighting condi-
minance level (6000 cd/m2). However, the ANOVA analysis of text tions. Mean and standard deviation for the aspects of perceived work
comprehension questions showed no significant differences between load that were scored by the participants and the overall workload

Fig. 3. Example of settings when performing the reading tasks. The black dot on the right screen represents the area of reading, re-playing the recorded reading
process.

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Table 4
Mean and standard deviation (SD) of reading eye movements of the first IReST texts.
No glare 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2

Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

Fixation rates/s 3.5 ± 0.4 3.4 ± 1.0 3.6 ± 0.4 3.5 ± 0.5
Fixation durations (ms) 253.7 ± 35.1 221.1 ± 70.0 236.2 ± 31.3 220.2 ± 40.6
Saccade rates/sec 2.4 ± 0.3 3.4 ± 1.0 2.2 ± 0.4 2.0 ± 0.5
Regression rates/s 0.6 ± 0.3 0.6 ± 0.3 0.7 ± 0.2 0.6 ± 0.2
WPM 201.7 ± 42.4 200.2 ± 50.0 204.4 ± 41.3 202.6 ± 48.5

Table 5
Mean and standard deviation (SD) of reading eye movements of the last IReST texts.
No glare 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2

Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

Fixation rates/sec 3.3 ± 1.0 3.7 ± 0.5 3.4 ± 1.0 3.5 ± 1.1
Fixation durations (ms) 224.8 ± 66.5 230.4 ± 41.9 211.1 ± 68.6 189.5 ± 59.5
Saccade rates/sec 2.2 ± 0.7 2.2 ± 0.5 2.1 ± 0.8 1.9 ± 0.7
Regression rates/sec 0.6 ± 0.3 0.6 ± 0.2 0.6 ± 0.4 0.6 ± 0.3
WPM 190.9 ± 55.4 215.9 ± 45.5 213.5 ± 45.4 209.1 ± 49.8

(OW) are illustrated in Table 7. Table 7

The FD results were based on the first 15 FD measurements from Mean and standard deviation (SD) for the aspects of work load and overall
each subject (N = 16) under the four lighting conditions. A repeated- workload (OW) in different lighting conditions.
measures ANOVA showed no significant differences for the mean dis- No glare 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2
parity but was found to increase towards esophoric (crossed) FD with
the adversity of the lighting conditions. The mean and standard de- Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD
viation for all FD measurements under the different lighting conditions
Mental work 3.1 ± 2.0 4.0 ± 1.4 5.0 ± 1.6 5.7 ± 1.6
can be seen in Table 8. However, the variation was not found to be load
equal between conditions. When analysing the variation within the 15 Physical work 1.8 ± 1.2 2.7 1.6 3.3 2.6 3.8 ± 2.0
measurements, a significantly higher variation was found (p = 0.0358) load
comparing each subjects’ standard deviation between conditions. Temporal work 3.0 ± 1.8 3.1 1.5 3.7 2.1 4.0 ± 2.0
load
Pairwise comparisons between initial measurements in the lighting
Performance 2.7 ± 2.4 4.2 ± 2.6 3.8 ± 2.6 4.4 ± 2.4
condition of no glare and measurements performed after reading tasks Effort 3.7 ± 2.6 5.1 ± 2.2 4.8 ± 2.3 5.8 ± 2.4
in all glare conditions, a significantly higher variation was found in all Frustration 2.4 ± 1.9 4.1 ± 2.9 3.4 ± 2.6 4.2 ± 2.9
three lighting conditions (2000 cd/m2, p = 0.0451; 4000 cd/m2, OW 3.7 ± 1.2 3.9 ± 1.2 4.0 ± 1.2 4.0 ± 1.3
p = 0.0425; 6000 cd/m2, p = 0.0297).
Note: Answered in a 10-degree Visual Analog Scale (VAS) where 0 is low and 10
Further analysis indicated a correlation between hurting eyes and
is high.
the variation of horizontal FD comparing all lighting conditions, but
this finding is not statistically significant (p = 0.068).
to discomfort glare (Lin et al., 2015).
The usefulness of FD measurements as a tool to evaluate the impact
4. Discussion of lighting conditions on accommodation and vergence systems have
previously been shown in Glimne et al. (2013). The FD provides a va-
The results from this study shows that direct glare increase the luable assessment of the quality of binocular vision in terms of bino-
demand on the oculomotor system. A reduced binocular eye movement cular coordination. Disability glare is known to increase the stress on
control is associated with raised eye symptoms and is therefore believed the binocular vision due to reduced reading visibility (Jainta et al.,
to contribute to visual related symptoms reported by computer workers 2011; Jaschinski-Kruza, 1994; Pickwell et al., 1987b). For the inter-
(CVS) in previous research. We found that binocular coordination was pretation of these facts it is reasonable to believe that computer work
negatively affected, and an increased pain level in the eyes was induced increases the negative outcome of visual demands when exposed to
with the severity of glare. In this study, pupillary contraction was not glare, since the screen is flat and only provide 2D features in the most
evaluated regarding used luminance levels with the glare source. central part of the visual field (Glimne et al., 2015b). High visual
Although, according to previous studies pupil constriction is correlated

Table 6
Mean and standard deviation (SD) for the most scored aspects of vision experience in different lighting conditions.
No glare 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2

Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

Hurting eyes 0.4 ± 0.8 0.3 ± 0.6 0.9 ± 1.1 1.1 ± 1.3
Tired eyes 1.7 ± 1.2 1.8 ± 1.1 2.0 ± 1.2 2.2 ± 1.2
Difficulties in remembering the text 1.4 ± 0.8 1.7 ± 1.1 1.9 ± 1.1 1.9 ± 1.2
Needing to reread the text 1.2 ± 0.9 1.2 ± 0.8 1.3 ± 0.7 1.4 ± 0.9

Note: The questionnaire is answered in a score between 0 and 4: 0) Never; 1) Rarely; 2) Sometimes; 3) Often; 4) Always.

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Table 8
The average amount (mean) and standard deviation (SD) for all fixation disparity (FD) measurements under the different lighting conditions.
No glare No glare 2000 cd/m2 2000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 4000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2 6000 cd/m2
First Second First Second First Second First Second

Mean −0.7 −0.7 −0.7 −0.9 −0.5 −0.6 −0.4 −0.2

SD ± 1.5 ± 1.9 ± 2.0 ± 2.3 ± 1.7 ± 2.1 ± 1.3 ± 1.8

Note. Negative values represent exophoric conditions (uncrossed).

requirement have been implicated as a contributing factor to shoulder Relevance to industry

pain associated with computer use (Gowrisankaran et al., 2015). The
present study supports this reasoning and clearly demonstrates the need The present paper shows that direct glare during computer work
of a carefully designed computer work environment that does not reduces the binocular control and causes visual stress. This have a ne-
subject the users to unnecessarily high levels of glare. gative effect on users reading performance and increase the risk for
The results further show that glare had a statistically significant adverse eye symptoms, such as computer vision syndrome.
effect on the participants’ cognitive performance. Higher levels of glare
increased the self-reported mental load and the difficulty in re- Acknowledgement
membering. Sustained mental workload may over time result in mental
ill-health and stress-related disorders (Fallahi et al., 2016). This research did not receive any specific grant from funding
The considerable variation in saccade length and fixation duration is agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
related to ease or difficulty involved in processing the target text
(Rayner, 1998). Reading speed and reading performance has been References
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