Abstract

The negative physical effects of night shift work are well understood. Research into psychological problems associated with night shift work, however, is sparse. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the difference in psychological symptom patterns between day and night shift workers. Data were obtained on 121 undergraduate volunteers. The sample consisted of 39 male and 82 female volunteers between the ages of 18 and 58 years. All participants were organized into two shift types: Day and Night. Day (n = 65) was classified as working hours primarily in the daytime (7 AM – 5PM). Night (n = 56) was classified as working hours primarily in the nighttime (6 PM – 6 AM). A two-way between-subjects MANOVA was used to assess the influence of gender and shift on the nine SCL-90-R subscale T-scores. The gender main effect was not significant, F(9, 109) = .668, p = .736. No significant difference in SCL-90-R subscale scores as a function of shift was observed, F(9, 109) = 1.141, p = .34. The gender x shift interaction was not significant, F(9, 109) = 1.308, p = .241. Results showed no significant difference between day and night shift worker distress levels. Further research into this topic is recommended.

Notes

If this is your Honors thesis, and want to learn how to access it or for more information about readership statistics, contact us at STARS@ucf.edu

Thesis Completion

2015

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Fouty, H. Edward

Degree

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Psychology

Subjects

Dissertations, Academic -- Sciences; Sciences -- Dissertations, Academic

Location

UCF Daytona Beach

Format

PDF

Identifier

CFH0004802

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Document Type

Honors in the Major Thesis

Download

Included in

Psychology Commons

Share

COinS