Citation

Marando I, Matthews RW, Grosser L, Yates C, Banks S. Sleep 2022; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Publisher Associated Professional Sleep Societies)

DOI

10.1093/sleep/zsac167

PMID

35867054

Abstract

Sleep deprivation and time of day have been shown to play a critical role in decreasing ability to sustain attention, such as when driving long distances. However, a gap in the literature exists regarding external factors, such as workload. One way to examine workload is via modulating time on task. This study investigated the combined effect of sleep deprivation, time of day, and time on task as a workload factor on driving performance. Twenty-one participants (18-34y, 10 Females) underwent 62 hours of sleep deprivation within a controlled laboratory environment. Participants received an 8-hour baseline and 9.5-hour recovery sleep. Every 8 hours, participants completed a Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT), Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS), 30-minute monotonous driving task and NASA-Task Load Index (TLX). Driving variables examined were lane deviation, number of crashes, speed deviation and time outside the safe zone. Workload was measured by comparing two 15-minute loops of the driving track. A mixed model ANOVA revealed significant main effects of day and time of day on all driving performance measures (p<.001). There was a significant main effect of workload on lane deviation (p<.05), indicating that a longer time on task resulted in greater lane deviation. A significant main effect of day (p<.001) but not time of day for the NASA-TLX, PVT and KSS was found. Time on task has a significant further impact on driving performance and should be considered alongside sleep deprivation and time of day when implementing strategies for long-distance driving.

Language: en

Keywords

driving performance; sleep deprivation; sustained attention; time of day; time on task; workload