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Choosing to work at night: a moderating influence on individual tolerance to shift work
1Social and Applied Psychology Unit, Sheffield University, United Kingdom.
The Journal of Applied Psychology
|June 1, 1994
Summary
Choosing permanent night shifts, rather than rotating schedules, improves tolerance to shift work. Individual circumstances significantly influence this choice, supporting permanent night schedules for better worker adaptation.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Health
- Sleep Medicine
- Human Factors Engineering
Background:
- Shift work is prevalent in healthcare, affecting nurses and midwives.
- Understanding factors influencing tolerance to night work is crucial for designing effective work schedules.
- Individual differences may play a significant role in adapting to non-standard work hours.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of voluntarily choosing night shifts versus rotating shifts on tolerance.
- To examine the influence of individual circumstances and personality on the decision to work night shifts.
- To assess the relationship between shift work choices and health, sleep, and social factors.
Main Methods:
- Survey of 587 nurses and midwives.
- Assessment of physical and psychological health.
- Measurement of sleep difficulties, social disruption, and chronotype (morning/evening preference).
- Analysis of reasons for engaging in shift work.
Main Results:
- Voluntarily choosing permanent night shifts enhances tolerance compared to rotating schedules.
- Individual circumstances are key factors in the decision to work night shifts.
- No specific mention of personality type's direct impact on tolerance in the provided text.
Conclusions:
- Permanent night-shift schedules may be beneficial for worker tolerance and well-being.
- Individualized approaches to shift work scheduling are warranted.
- Findings have implications for optimizing shift system design in healthcare and other industries.