Peer-reviewed research
Benefit of touch-typing performance on muscle activity and pain over 4 hours
Thai Journal of Ergonomics, 2019
Read the originalRead on October 16, 2026
- What it is
- A laboratory study comparing 21 touch typists with 20 non-touch typists over a 240-minute continuous typing task, recording muscle activity and discomfort.
- How much weight it carries
- Peer-reviewed but small and observational: the groups were chosen by skill, not randomised, and all participants were women. It cannot show that learning to touch type causes less discomfort.
Facts taken from this source
- In a 2019 laboratory study, the anterior deltoid muscle in touch typists was more active than in non-touch typists at minutes 40, 80 and 160 of a 240-minute typing task, at 8 to 9 percent against 5.4 to 5.5 percent of maximum voluntary contraction.
“% MVC of anterior deltoid in the touch typist group was significantly higher than the non-touch typist group (8-9% vs. 5.4-5.5%) at minutes 40, 80 and 160.” (Abstract)
- A 2019 laboratory study compared 21 touch typists with 20 non-touch typists during a 240-minute continuous typing task.
“Two groups of typists comprising 21 touch typists and 20 non-touch typists performed a continuous typing task for 240 minutes.” (Methods)
- The 2019 laboratory study of touch and non-touch typists was carried out among healthy female typists.
“among healthy female touch and non-touch typists” (Abstract)
- The authors of a small 2019 study concluded that touch typists had less discomfort and more productivity than non-touch typists during a 240-minute typing task.
“The study demonstrated that touch typists had advantage in discomfort and more productivity.” (Results and conclusion)
- In the 2019 study, non-touch typists rated neck and right shoulder discomfort higher than touch typists at minute 240 of a 240-minute typing task, on a visual analogue scale.
“VAS in the non-touch typist group were significantly higher than the touch typist group in neck (3.19 cm. vs. 2.10 cm.) and right shoulder (3.49 cm. vs. 2.18 cm.) at minute 240” (Abstract)