Safety and Health at Work Vol. 10 Issue 1 2019
The Effects of Fatigue on Cognitive Performance in Police Officers and Staff During a Forward Rotating Shift Pattern (Original Article)
Dublin Core
Title
Safety and Health at Work Vol. 10 Issue 1 2019
The Effects of Fatigue on Cognitive Performance in Police Officers and Staff During a Forward Rotating Shift Pattern (Original Article)
The Effects of Fatigue on Cognitive Performance in Police Officers and Staff During a Forward Rotating Shift Pattern (Original Article)
Subject
Cognitive task, Driver fatigue, Police, Shift work
Description
Background: Few studies have examined the effects of a forward rotating shift pattern on police employee performance and well-being. This study sought to compare sleep duration, cognitive perfor-
mance, and vigilance at the start and end of each shift within a three-shift, forward rotating shift pattern, common in United Kingdom police forces.
Methods: Twenty-three police employee participants were recruited from North Yorkshire Police (mean age, 43 years). The participants were all working the same, 10-day, forward rotating shift pattern. No other exclusion criteria were stipulated. Sleep data were gathered using both actigraphy and self-reported methods; cognitive performance and vigilance were assessed using a customized test bat-
tery, comprising five tests: motor praxis task, visual object learning task, NBACK, digital symbol sub-
stitution task, and psychomotor vigilance test. Statistical comparisons were conducted, taking into
account the shift type, shift number, and the start and end of each shift worked.
Results: Sleep duration was found to be significantly reduced after night shifts. Results showed a sig-
nificant main effect of shift type in the visual object learning task and NBACK task and also a significant
main effect of start/end in the digital symbol substitution task, along with a number of significant
interactions.
Conclusion: The results of the tests indicated that learning and practice effects may have an effect on
results of some of the tests. However, it is also possible that due to the fast rotating nature of the shift pattern, participants did not adjust to any particular shift; hence, their performance in the cognitive and vigilance tests did not suffer significantly as a result of this particular shift pattern.
mance, and vigilance at the start and end of each shift within a three-shift, forward rotating shift pattern, common in United Kingdom police forces.
Methods: Twenty-three police employee participants were recruited from North Yorkshire Police (mean age, 43 years). The participants were all working the same, 10-day, forward rotating shift pattern. No other exclusion criteria were stipulated. Sleep data were gathered using both actigraphy and self-reported methods; cognitive performance and vigilance were assessed using a customized test bat-
tery, comprising five tests: motor praxis task, visual object learning task, NBACK, digital symbol sub-
stitution task, and psychomotor vigilance test. Statistical comparisons were conducted, taking into
account the shift type, shift number, and the start and end of each shift worked.
Results: Sleep duration was found to be significantly reduced after night shifts. Results showed a sig-
nificant main effect of shift type in the visual object learning task and NBACK task and also a significant
main effect of start/end in the digital symbol substitution task, along with a number of significant
interactions.
Conclusion: The results of the tests indicated that learning and practice effects may have an effect on
results of some of the tests. However, it is also possible that due to the fast rotating nature of the shift pattern, participants did not adjust to any particular shift; hence, their performance in the cognitive and vigilance tests did not suffer significantly as a result of this particular shift pattern.
Creator
Yvonne Taylor, Natasha Merat, Samantha Jamson
Publisher
Elsevier Korea LLC
Date
March 2019
Contributor
Sri Wahyuni
Format
PDF
Language
English
Type
Text
Coverage
Safety and Health at Work Vol. 10 Issue 1 2019
Files
Citation
Yvonne Taylor, Natasha Merat, Samantha Jamson, “Safety and Health at Work Vol. 10 Issue 1 2019
The Effects of Fatigue on Cognitive Performance in Police Officers and Staff During a Forward Rotating Shift Pattern (Original Article),” Repository Horizon University Indonesia, accessed April 4, 2025, https://repository.horizon.ac.id/items/show/1909.
The Effects of Fatigue on Cognitive Performance in Police Officers and Staff During a Forward Rotating Shift Pattern (Original Article),” Repository Horizon University Indonesia, accessed April 4, 2025, https://repository.horizon.ac.id/items/show/1909.