earticle

영어

In this study, the representative hand shapes for the adult Koreans were analyzed by factor analysis and cluster analyses. The analyses were conducted on the anthropometric data of 58 hand dimensions from 325 subjects having nonhomogeneous demographics. Maximum hand circumference, first phalanx length of index finger, and ratio between the two measures were the independent variables for the cluster analyses. The results of the study showed that Korean hand shapes can be divided into 2 clusters irrespective of their size for each of the male and female group. There were slight differences in component ratio of hand shapes with respect to the occupation and the age, but their differences were not statistically significant. The representative Korean hand shapes and their anthrpometric dimensions could be used to design and establish proper sizing system for various hand operating devices.