The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Workplace Behavior.

• Author: Simone, Christopher

THE EFFECTS OF SLEEP DEPRIVATION ON WORKPLACE behavior

Lack of adequate sleep, or sleep deprivation, reduces workplace productivity, public safety, and personal well-being (Dement, 1999). Everyone needs an adequate amount of sleep to function properly in their daily routine, but not getting enough sleep may create sleep deprivation. When we are sleep deprived, we experience diminished alertness and cognitive performance (Thomas, 2000). The degrading effects of sleep deprivation on alertness and cognitive performance suggest alterations in underlying brain physiology and function. To date, however, only a few studies have investigated in vivo brain activity changes mediating sleep deprivation-induced neurobehavioral impairment in normal volunteers (2000). Through these studies, they have determined that there may be a link between sleep deprivation and behavioral and performance issues.

On average, more than one third of all Americans do not get sleep on a regular basis, meaning that they are getting less than 7 hours of sleep per night (CDC, 2018). This essentially means that up to one third of Americans are working while sleep deprived, which is alarming as a number of studies have demonstrated that sleep deprivation increases unethical behavior (Welsh, 2018). The relationship between unethical behavior in the workplace to being sleep deprived appears to be quite strong, and evidence suggests that sleep deprivation also comes with further consequences, one of which is memory. Sleep deprivation (SD) may affect subsequent learning capacity and ability to form new memories, particularly in the case of hippocampus-dependent tasks (Hagewoud, 2009). Sleep deprivation prior to a learning task may affect acquisition in several ways, not only through a general decrease in alertness or motivation, but also through more specific effects on brain regions and neuronal substrates involved in memory processes (2009). Most individuals that have experienced sleep deprivation can attest to having a poor short-term memory during times of being fatigued.

Recent studies of Americans have shown direct relationships between work hours and total sleep time. The more time an individual spends working, the less time they spend sleeping, even on non-workdays (Basner et al., 2007; Krueger & Friedman, 2009). Based on these studies, Americans are working more and sleeping less, which may be contributing to a variety of incidents and illnesses throughout the country. Americans who report sleeping less than six hours per night have longer work hours and the odds of being a short sleeper have increased for full-time workers over the past 31 years (Knutson et al., 2010).

This was not always the case in America, as during the 1970s Americans actually worked less than some Europeans (Prescott, 2004), which is quite surprising as Americans now work fifty percent more than those same Europeans (2004).

Sleep deprivation can even impact an employee while commuting to work, which affects business operations as a result. A recent study shows that moderate correlations have been found between subjective sleepiness scales and changes in vigilance, reaction time and lane drifting whilst driving following sleep deprivation (Howard, 2014). Hence, if an employee is working long hours, or sleep deprived for another reason, they may experience an accident before they arrive at their workplace.

There are many reasons why employees can be sleep deprived, some of which are obvious, such as working long hours on a daily basis. Other reasons may require a medical diagnosis to determine, like sleep apnea. Employees experiencing symptoms of sleep deprivation should, however, begin to determine the root cause of the fatigue.

SLEEP DISORDERS

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a frequent and insufficiently recognized condition that is associated with upper airway...