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Time of day, time of sleep, and time on task effects on sleepiness and cognitive performance of bus drivers

  • Sleep Breathing Physiology and Disorders • Original Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Optimal cognitive performance might prevent vehicle accidents. Identifying time-related circadian and homeostatic parameters having an impact on cognitive performance of drivers may be crucial to optimize drivers’ performance.

Methods

In this prospective study conducted on bus drivers, two drivers alternated driving during a 24-h round trip and were accompanied by an interviewer. Each driver was tested using Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) and the reversed digit span Wechsler Working Memory test before the start of his shift and then every 6 h during a “work/driving” day. Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) was assessed before and after the journey. Linear mixed model was used to explore the factors affecting cognitive performance and sleepiness in univariate and multivariate analysis.

Results

Among 35 bus drivers, the effect of time of day on working memories was statistically significant (p = 0.001), with the lowest working memory scores at 04:00 am (± 1). The highest score of subjective sleepiness was also at 04:00 am (± 1). The time on task parameter affected sleepiness significantly (p = 0.024) and sleepiness was significantly associated with decreased working memory. Psychomotor Vigilance Task reaction time mean and the number of minor lapses were significantly increased after the journey, which suggested decreased vigilance. In multivariable analysis, a longer interval between the beginning of working hours and testing time (B (95% CI) = 15.25 (0.49 to 30), p = 0.043) was associated with higher (i.e., slower) PVT reaction time mean.

Conclusions

These results suggest that optimizing bus drivers’ working schedules may improve drivers’ sleepiness and cognitive performance and thus increase road safety.

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Data availability

All our data and analyses are available.

Code availability

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Maryam Maghsoudipour, Pamela N. DeYoung & Atul Malhotra

  2. Department of Ergonomics, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Maryam Maghsoudipour & Ramin Moradi

  3. Department of Neurobiology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Sara Moghimi

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Sonia Ancoli-Israel

Authors
  1. Maryam Maghsoudipour
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  2. Ramin Moradi
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  3. Sara Moghimi
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  4. Sonia Ancoli-Israel
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  5. Pamela N. DeYoung
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  6. Atul Malhotra
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Correspondence to Maryam Maghsoudipour.

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Ethics approval

The study has been approved by the ethics committee of the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences and has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. All participants gave their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study.

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The participants gave written consent for the publication of the study prior to their inclusion in the study.

Conflict of interest

None of the authors of this paper has a financial or personal relationship with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias the content of the paper. Dr. Malhotra is funded by the NIH. He reports income related to medical education from Merck and Livanova. ResMed provided a philanthropic donation to UC San Diego.

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Maghsoudipour, M., Moradi, R., Moghimi, S. et al. Time of day, time of sleep, and time on task effects on sleepiness and cognitive performance of bus drivers. Sleep Breath 26, 1759–1769 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-021-02526-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-021-02526-6

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