A luz alem da visão

Abstract

MARTAU, B.T.. The light beyond vision: lighting and its relationship with health and well-being of employees at street and shopping mall retail stores in Porto Alegre. Campinas, 2009. 504 p.. Thesis [Doctorate in Civil Engineering] -Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Urbanism, University of Campinas.This work addresses the issue of non-visual impacts of human exposure to light, in an attempt to relate the quality of lighting to health, comfort, and well-being of female retail store employees. The sample for the cross-sectional study was randomly established with female volunteers. Three groups were selected: street retail stores with outside contact and daily working hours (9 a.m. to 6 p.m.), shopping mall retail stores with no window facing outside, with daily working hours (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.), and shopping mall retail stores with no window facing outside, with afternoon and evening working hours (2 p.m. to 10 p.m.). Each group included ten employees. Assessment of lighting considered the dimensions of the stores and characteristics of systems, including the occurrence of glare, color appearance of light, flexibility, and possibility of lighting control by employees. The tools to assess well-being and health were psychometric scales internationally validated by the psychiatric field to measure depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. Assessment of sleep conditions and analysis of the activity/rest rhythm was carried by a wrist monitor with attached luximeter (Actiwatch) and the analysis of the body temperature rhythm was made by a temperature sensor (Ibutton), to which each participant was submitted for five consecutive days. The lighting pattern's influence on the circadian system was verified by measuring saliva melatonin and cortisol levels. The degree of