Gender difference in psychological evaluation of subjective responses to different-axis whole-body vibration

Subjective tests were performed to examine gender differences in subjective response to whole-body vibration (WBV) with different vibration axes from a viewpoint of psychological evaluation based on the category judgment method. The experiments were performed with totally twelve healthy subjects in twenties, six males and six females with mean ages of 23.2 and 24.5 years old, respectively. WBV stimuli prepared were 0.2, 0.4, and 0.8 m/s(2) r.m.s., each of which had a frequency range of 1-100 Hz with a constant power spectrum density. The vibration stimuli were applied to the subject seated relaxedly in a seat rigidly fixed on the platform of a 6-degrees-of freedom vibration system. The subjects were asked to respond to each vibration stimulus by answering a certain category number, corresponding to a degree of discomfort they felt, from the five comfort evaluation categories Males were more sensitive to vibration exposure directions than females. Regardless of vibration axes, males psychologically evaluated exposure to WBV more severely than females.