Glove Effect on Strength: An Investigation of Glove Attributes

A number of human performance capabilities are compromised with gloves. Explanations for the strength decrements with gloves have ranged from lack of tactile feedback when wearing gloves, to improper fit, to individual and task differences. An attempt has been made in this investigation to develop a predictive relationship between strength decrements and glove characteristics. Fifteen subjects participated in an experiment involving a grip and a grasp task with three gloves and a bare handed condition. Tenacity, snugness, suppleness and the material thickness were objectively measured as glove attributes. Significant Task and Glove effects were found. Results suggest that the glove size may not matter much in performance whereas resistance to sliding is an important performance determinant when using gloves. The results suggest that the strength decrements are complex functions of a number of glove attributes.