ET 305 Human Factors of Engineering
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Define human factors (or ergonomics) - CORRECT ANSWER - scientific discipline
concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system,
and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design in order to optimize
human well-being and overall system performance
What are the three goals of human factors? - CORRECT ANSWER - Improve
performance
Increase safety
Increase user satisfaction
What are the five typical approaches of human factors? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Equipment design, Task design
Environmental design, Training, Selection
List some human factors discipline examples - CORRECT ANSWER - Anatomy,
Physiology,
Physics and Biomechanics
What is the difference between human factors and ergonomics? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Historically, ergonomics has focused on the human factors related to physical work. Ergonomics
has also been the preferred label in Europe.
What is the difference between basic and applied research? Give an example of each. -
CORRECT ANSWER - Basic research: The development of theory, principles, and
findings that generalize over a wide range of people, tasks, and settings.
Example: A series of studies that tests the theory that as people practice hundreds of times it
becomes automatic and no longer takes thought cognitive thought-processing.
, Applied research: The development of theory, principles, and findings that are relatively specific
with respect to particular populations, tasks, products, systems, and/or environments.
Example: Measuring the extent to which the use of a cell phone while driving takes driver
attention away from primary driving tasks.
What are the three types of human factors research methods? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Descriptive studies, Experimental research, Evaluation research
What are the typical descriptive study methods? List three examples. - CORRECT
ANSWER - Observation, Surveys and questionnaires, Incident and accident reports
The experimental research examines the relationship between causal _____ variables and
resulting changes in _____ variables. - CORRECT ANSWER - Independent
Dependent
What are the five steps in conducting an experiment? - CORRECT ANSWER - Define
problem and hypotheses
Specify the experimental plan
Conduct the study
Analyze the data
Draw conclusions
What are the different experimental designs? List three examples. - CORRECT
ANSWER - The two-group design: Compares two conditions/levels for the independent
variable
Multiple group design: Examines many levels of the variable
Factorial design: Evaluates two or more independent variables by combining the different levels
of each independent variable
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Define human factors (or ergonomics) - CORRECT ANSWER - scientific discipline
concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system,
and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design in order to optimize
human well-being and overall system performance
What are the three goals of human factors? - CORRECT ANSWER - Improve
performance
Increase safety
Increase user satisfaction
What are the five typical approaches of human factors? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Equipment design, Task design
Environmental design, Training, Selection
List some human factors discipline examples - CORRECT ANSWER - Anatomy,
Physiology,
Physics and Biomechanics
What is the difference between human factors and ergonomics? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Historically, ergonomics has focused on the human factors related to physical work. Ergonomics
has also been the preferred label in Europe.
What is the difference between basic and applied research? Give an example of each. -
CORRECT ANSWER - Basic research: The development of theory, principles, and
findings that generalize over a wide range of people, tasks, and settings.
Example: A series of studies that tests the theory that as people practice hundreds of times it
becomes automatic and no longer takes thought cognitive thought-processing.
, Applied research: The development of theory, principles, and findings that are relatively specific
with respect to particular populations, tasks, products, systems, and/or environments.
Example: Measuring the extent to which the use of a cell phone while driving takes driver
attention away from primary driving tasks.
What are the three types of human factors research methods? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Descriptive studies, Experimental research, Evaluation research
What are the typical descriptive study methods? List three examples. - CORRECT
ANSWER - Observation, Surveys and questionnaires, Incident and accident reports
The experimental research examines the relationship between causal _____ variables and
resulting changes in _____ variables. - CORRECT ANSWER - Independent
Dependent
What are the five steps in conducting an experiment? - CORRECT ANSWER - Define
problem and hypotheses
Specify the experimental plan
Conduct the study
Analyze the data
Draw conclusions
What are the different experimental designs? List three examples. - CORRECT
ANSWER - The two-group design: Compares two conditions/levels for the independent
variable
Multiple group design: Examines many levels of the variable
Factorial design: Evaluates two or more independent variables by combining the different levels
of each independent variable
