P~T K A I , P. T h e diurnal rhythm of adrenaline secretion in subjects with different working habits. Acta physiol. scand. 1971. 81. 30-34. Subjects classified as habitual morning us. evening workers on the basis of their answers to a questionnaire, were compared with regard to catecholamine excretion under conditions of relaxation in the morning and in the evening. I t was shown that individuals who preferred to work in the evening, excreted more adrenaline in the evening than in the morning, while individuals characterized by morning alertness excreted more adrenaline in the morning than in the evening, also when relaxing. With regard to noradrenaline excretion there was no marked difference between the groups.The present investigation forms part of a larger project concerned with the relationship between catecholamine excretion and psychological functions. (Among the reviews in this field may be mentioned those of Euler 1967 andFrankenhaeuser 1970). Earlier experiments (e.g. PBtkai et al. 1967, Frankenhaeuser et al. 1968, Frankenhaeuser and Rissler 1970 have shown a positive correlation between catecholamine levels, especially adrenaline level as measured by urinary excretion, and performance. These results were interpreted in the light of the hypothetical inverted-U function relating behavioural efficiency to arousal level. According to this hypothesis efficiency increases as arousal increases to a medium level, and then declines as arousal rises still further. I t was assumed that adrenaline excretion would serve as an indicator of arousal level. Thus, performance would be positively related to low to moderate adrenaline levels.Additional information concerning the part played by adrenaline in the regulation of arousal, was obtained in a study by Levi (1966), where the subjects were exposed to a 72 hr vigil under conditions which simulated combat. He found that adrenaline excretion, measured at three-hourly intervals, showed a regular sinusshaped diurnal variation. The lowest excretion values were obtained just after midnight, coinciding with periods of maximum subjective fatigue and poorest performance.
30