A Survey of Fatigue in Selected United States Air Force Shift Worker Populations

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to quantitatively assess fatigue in several United States Air Force (USAF) shift worker populations. An epidemiological cross-sectional survey of 172 USAF personnel was conducted from October 2004 to May 2005. The study sample was recruited from 4 different USAF populations using some form of shift work to include irregular, rotational, or fixed shifts. Self-reported average daily sleep and steep quality did not correlate with fatigue. Fatigue was greater in the unmanned aircraft versus the manned aircraft squadron irrespective of career field; implying organizational work-related factors such as workload or manpower were underlying this observation. Crewmembers and maintenance personnel reported equal levels of fatigue, suggesting crewmember work/rest guidelines may not be useful for mitigating fatigue associated with shift work. Shift workers were equally fatigued whether at home base or deployed in current military operations, reinforcing the intrinsically fatiguing nature of shift work.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2006
Accession Number
ADA446677

Entities

People

  • Anthony P. Tvaryanas
  • William T. Thompson

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Autonomy
  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Airborne Warning And Control System
  • Aircrafts
  • Control Systems
  • Data Science
  • Flight Crews
  • Governments
  • Health Services
  • Information Science
  • Knowledge Management
  • Maintenance Personnel
  • Military Operations
  • Personnel Management
  • Quality Of Life
  • Surveys
  • United States
  • Unmanned Aerial Systems

Readers

  • Circadian Sleep-Wake Regulation and Chronobiology
  • Occupational Health and Safety.
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Autonomy