Abstract des Autors

Industrialisation developed in Europe particularly in the aftermath of the First World War, surfing the wave generated by an increasing need for reconstruction and modernisation in Western societies. In this context, the issue of workers’ physical fitness became an economic concern for both industry leaders and governments. Focus was on Ergonomics, as seen by the creation of the Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors in the UK in September 1949, and the publication of its journal Ergonomics in 1957. In France, the concern for enhancing a worker's performance through systematic training reached its climax in the mid 1950s. A doctrine was locally elaborated by educators and paved the way for a wider diffusion of new concepts, with France and at a later stage other European countries, organising several international congresses on the topic. The first three of these meetings, held in Paris in 1954, Brussels in 1958 and Helsinki in 1959 were of particular importance. There, the French perspectives took an important place in the final recommendations and resulted in the creation of the commission ‘Sport and Work’ within the International Council for Physical Education and Sport, and with the support of UNESCO. Verf.-Referat