Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study

Objectives Shiftworkers routinely obtain inadequate sleep, which has major health consequences. Sleep hygiene describes a range of behaviours, lifestyle and environmental factors that can improve sleep. To date, limited research has examined sleep hygiene in shiftworkers. This study aimed to assess...

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Main Authors: Grace E Vincent, Sally A Ferguson, Caroline M Rampling, Charlotte Cecelia Gupta, Alexandra E Shriane, Gabrielle Rigney
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2022-07-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/12/7/e059677.full
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author Grace E Vincent
Sally A Ferguson
Caroline M Rampling
Charlotte Cecelia Gupta
Alexandra E Shriane
Gabrielle Rigney
author_facet Grace E Vincent
Sally A Ferguson
Caroline M Rampling
Charlotte Cecelia Gupta
Alexandra E Shriane
Gabrielle Rigney
author_sort Grace E Vincent
collection DOAJ
description Objectives Shiftworkers routinely obtain inadequate sleep, which has major health consequences. Sleep hygiene describes a range of behaviours, lifestyle and environmental factors that can improve sleep. To date, limited research has examined sleep hygiene in shiftworkers. This study aimed to assess the sociodemographic and behavioural correlates of sleep hygiene knowledge and engagement with sleep hygiene practices in Australian shiftworkers.Study design An online, cross-sectional survey.Setting and participants Australian adults from across multiple industries (n=588) who work shift work.Measures The online survey included questions regarding sleep hygiene knowledge and questions from modified versions of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Sleep Hygiene Index.Results Of the 588 participants, 52.9% reported having heard of ‘sleep hygiene’. Of these participants, 77.5% reported understanding the term moderately, extremely or very well. Engagement with each sleep hygiene practice was varied. Common sleep hygiene practices were controlling the bedroom environment (eg, a cool, dark and quiet bedroom). Less common practices were avoiding light as bedtime approaches. Logistic regressions revealed that shiftworkers who had heard of sleep hygiene were more likely to engage in sleep hygiene practices and had better sleep quality compared with those who had not heard of sleep hygiene. Increased engagement in sleep hygiene practices did not predict the likelihood of individuals reporting better sleep quality.Conclusions Shiftworkers demonstrated varied knowledge, understanding and engagement with individual sleep hygiene practices. Future research should focus on the development of sleep hygiene interventions that accommodate the unique challenges of shift work to optimise sleep.
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spelling doaj-art-8fb25b0777e94156b97c3678fe535c2d2025-01-31T21:00:08ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552022-07-0112710.1136/bmjopen-2021-059677Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional studyGrace E Vincent0Sally A Ferguson1Caroline M Rampling2Charlotte Cecelia Gupta3Alexandra E Shriane4Gabrielle Rigney5Appleton Institute, School of Health, Medical, and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Queensland, AustraliaAppleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide, South Australia, AustraliaAppleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide, South Australia, AustraliaAppleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide, South Australia, AustraliaAppleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide, South Australia, AustraliaAppleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide, South Australia, AustraliaObjectives Shiftworkers routinely obtain inadequate sleep, which has major health consequences. Sleep hygiene describes a range of behaviours, lifestyle and environmental factors that can improve sleep. To date, limited research has examined sleep hygiene in shiftworkers. This study aimed to assess the sociodemographic and behavioural correlates of sleep hygiene knowledge and engagement with sleep hygiene practices in Australian shiftworkers.Study design An online, cross-sectional survey.Setting and participants Australian adults from across multiple industries (n=588) who work shift work.Measures The online survey included questions regarding sleep hygiene knowledge and questions from modified versions of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Sleep Hygiene Index.Results Of the 588 participants, 52.9% reported having heard of ‘sleep hygiene’. Of these participants, 77.5% reported understanding the term moderately, extremely or very well. Engagement with each sleep hygiene practice was varied. Common sleep hygiene practices were controlling the bedroom environment (eg, a cool, dark and quiet bedroom). Less common practices were avoiding light as bedtime approaches. Logistic regressions revealed that shiftworkers who had heard of sleep hygiene were more likely to engage in sleep hygiene practices and had better sleep quality compared with those who had not heard of sleep hygiene. Increased engagement in sleep hygiene practices did not predict the likelihood of individuals reporting better sleep quality.Conclusions Shiftworkers demonstrated varied knowledge, understanding and engagement with individual sleep hygiene practices. Future research should focus on the development of sleep hygiene interventions that accommodate the unique challenges of shift work to optimise sleep.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/12/7/e059677.full
spellingShingle Grace E Vincent
Sally A Ferguson
Caroline M Rampling
Charlotte Cecelia Gupta
Alexandra E Shriane
Gabrielle Rigney
Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
BMJ Open
title Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
title_full Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
title_fullStr Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
title_full_unstemmed Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
title_short Does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in Australian shift workers? A cross-sectional study
title_sort does knowledge of sleep hygiene recommendations match behaviour in australian shift workers a cross sectional study
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/12/7/e059677.full
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