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Collecting Sleep, Circadian, Fatigue, and Performance Data in Complex Operational Environments
Published on: August 8, 2019
Increased errors and decreased performance at night: A systematic review of the evidence concerning shift work and
Pamela B de Cordova1, Michelle A Bradford1, Patricia W Stone2
1Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA.
Background:
Shift workers have worse health outcomes than employees who work standard business hours. However, it is unclear how this poorer health shift may be related to employee work productivity.
Objective:
The purpose of this systematic review is to assess the relationship between shift work and errors and performance.
Methods:
Searches of MEDLINE/PubMed, EBSCOhost, and CINAHL were conducted to identify articles that examined the relationship between shift work, errors, quality, productivity, and performance. All articles were assessed for study quality.
Results:
A total of 435 abstracts were screened with 13 meeting inclusion criteria. Eight studies were rated to be of strong, methodological quality. Nine studies demonstrated a positive relationship that night shift workers committed more errors and had decreased performance.
Conclusions:
Night shift workers have worse health that may contribute to errors and decreased performance in the workplace.
