Table 1.

Participant characteristics

	Men					Women
	N	%	Mean	SD	Range	N	%	Mean	SD	Range
Demographics and musculoskeletal pain
N Participants	3805	46.8				4327	53.2
Age			46.2	10.6	18–64			45.5	10.1	18–64
Education
Basic school 8–10 grade	469	12.3				393	9.1
General upper secondary school	181	4.8				174	4.0
Vocational upper secondary school	74	1.9				109	2.5
Vocational education	1454	38.2				1394	32.2
Short-cycle higher education	294	7.7				268	9.5
Medium-cycle higher education	646	17.0				1315	30.4
Bachelor	66	1.73				100	2.3
Long-cycle higher education	542	14.2				514	11.9
PhD degree	48	1.3				38	0.9
Missing	13	0.8				22	0.5
Musculoskeletal pain at baseline			1.45	1.43	0–5			1.65	1.47	0–5
Musculoskeletal pain at follow-up			1.39	1.41	0–5			1.70	1.50	0–5
Continuous exposures
Physical work demands			18.02	7.31	8–48			17.47	6.61	8–48
Quantitative demands			3.08	0.68	1–5			2.93	0.68	1–5
Emotional demands			2.76	1.02	1–5			3.27	1.04	1–5
Decision authority			4.20	0.76	1–5			4.21	0.72	1–5
Dichotomous exposures
High physical work demands (highest decile)	345	9.1				374	8.6
High quantitative demands (highest decile)	438	11.5				603	13.9
High emotional demands (highest decile)	282	7.4				192	4.4
Low decision authority (lowest decile)	187	4.9				160	3.7
Job strain			909	23.9				503	11.6
High job insecurity			402	10.6				503	11.6
Violence			118	3.1				341	7.9