The effects of a 30 minute napping opportunity during an actual night shift on performance and sleepiness in shift workers

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Howard, Mark, Radford, Lynette, Jackson, Melinda L, Swann, Philip and Kennedy, Gerard (2010) The effects of a 30 minute napping opportunity during an actual night shift on performance and sleepiness in shift workers. Biological Rhythm Research, 41 (2). pp. 137-148. ISSN 0929-1016

Abstract

Sleepiness due to sleep loss and circadian factors can have a detrimental effect on performance, and contribute to road and workplace accidents. A brief nap taken during or immediately before a night shift may alleviate sleepiness both at work and on the road after work. This study investigated the effects of a 30-minute napping opportunity before or during an actual night shift. Performance was evaluated in three repeated-measures, crossover conditions; a nap prior to night shift (20:15 h), a nap during night shift (04:00 h) and no nap. Eight healthy nightshift workers completed a simulated driving task, the Psychomotor Vigilance Task and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale at the start, end, and during an actual night shift. No significant improvement in performance was observed at the end of the night shift in either nap condition. A 30-minute napping opportunity was not sufficient to overcome the deleterious effects of sleep loss and circadian effects on performance during a first night shift, with no prior daytime sleep.

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Item type Article
URI https://vuir.vu.edu.au/id/eprint/2343
DOI 10.1080/09291010903030946
Official URL http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09291010903030946
Subjects Historical > Faculty/School/Research Centre/Department > School of Social Sciences and Psychology
Historical > FOR Classification > 1701 Psychology
Historical > SEO Classification > 9202 Health and Support Services
Keywords ResPubID18113; shiftwork, napping, driving, psychomotor vigilance, sleepiness, circadian effects
Citations in Scopus 20 - View on Scopus
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