The ability to self‐monitor performance when fatigued

Abstract

The present study aimed to systematically investigate the effects of elevated fatigue levels on the ability to self‐monitor performance. Eighteen participants, aged 19–26 y, remained awake for a period of 28 h. Neurobehavioural performance was measured at hourly intervals using four tests from a standardized computer test battery. From these four tests, six measures of performance were obtained: grammatical reasoning (accuracy and response latency); vigilance (accuracy and response latency); simple sensory comparison and tracking. In addition, before and after each test, participants completed visual analogue scales which required them to rate their alertness level and the speed and accuracy of their performance. Individual test results for both self‐ratings and neurobehavioural performance were converted to z‐scores. Planned comparison analysis indicated that scores on four of the six performance measures decreased significantly as hours of wakefulness increased. Similarly, predicted performance scores for all six measures of performance decreased significantly. Analysis revealed moderate correlations between predicted and actual performance for the four parameters affected by fatigue. Furthermore, moderate to high correlations were found between all six performance parameters and their respective post‐test self‐ratings. In addition, moderate to high correlations were found between predicted performance and alertness. Taken together, these findings suggest that as fatigue levels increase, subjects globally assess performance decrements. Results suggest that subjective alertness may in part mediate an individual’s global assessment of performance.

The Impact of Extended Leave on Sleep and Alertness in the Australian Rail Industry

“…The participants' true feelings of alertness may have been masked by an 'end-of-shift' effect which has been observed in other studies 21,29) . This is evident when comparing the post shift alertness levels for the afternoon and night shifts in Fig.…”

“…A possible reason for this result is that the alertness scales used (SamnPerelli and Visual Analogue Scales) may not have been sensitive enough to detect changes in alertness caused by the prior break length. However, recent publications have reported subjective estimates to have moderate to strong correlations with objective performance, especially at the end of a testing period 28,29) , refuting this argument. The reported lack of significance may instead be caused by limited testing opportunity.…”

The impact of 12-hour shifts on nurses’ health, wellbeing, and job satisfaction: A systematic review

“…However, studies have identified that healthcare professionals have difficulty in assessing their own levels of fatigue. [73,74] Thus, interventions should be introduced in healthcare organizations which include educational program such as Fatigue Countermeasure, [75] and schedule alterations which allow for information regarding the symptoms of fatigue, sleep hygiene measures, shift work and its adverse effects to be implemented. Furthermore, the hospital process could help in preventing fatigue among nurses by careful scheduling.…”

Fatigue and the Criminal Law

“…It is in addressing this question that scientific research can have an important impact, by assessing how well people can assess their impairment, what factors they take into account in doing so, and how well they can use this information to engage in appropriate behaviours. Research has shown that for situations involving a single period of acute sleep deprivation using laboratory tasks individuals have an accurate perception of their performance 26,27) . However, during simulated night shift work, the ability to predict performance was moderate at best 28) .…”

“…Thus a person who has 2 h of sleep in the prior 24 would not be covered by the law, and neither would the driver who causes serious injury but not death. Furthermore it overlooks the difficulty that individuals have when measuring their objective performance when fatigued [26][27][28][29] giving rise to potential complaints that people would not have a fair opportunity to comply with a law drafted in this manner (See 41) for a discussion of the application of the fair opportunity principle to involuntariness).…”