Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Oct 1;18(10):2339-2351.
doi: 10.5664/jcsm.10108.

Shift Work Disorder Index: initial validation and psychosocial associations in a sample of nurses

Daniel J Taylor  1   2 , Jessica R Dietch  1   3   4 , Sophie Wardle-Pinkston  1   2 , Danica C Slavish  1 , Brett Messman  1 , Camilo J Ruggero  1 , Kimberly Kelly  1
Affiliations

Shift Work Disorder Index: initial validation and psychosocial associations in a sample of nurses

Daniel J Taylor et al. J Clin Sleep Med. .

Abstract

Study objectives: Shift work is common yet does not always result in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5)-defined shift work sleep disorder (SWD). This study reports on the reliability and validity of the DSM-5 informed Shift Work Disorder Index (SWDI), the presence of probable SWD in nurses, and demographic, sleep, and psychosocial correlates.

Methods: Nurses (n = 454) completed the SWDI, psychosocial, and demographic questionnaires. Of the sample, n = 400 completed 14 days of sleep diaries, actigraphy, and additional questionnaires.

Results: The global SWDI demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α = .94), as well as good convergent and divergent validity in the nurse sample. Thirty-one percent of nurses were past-month shift workers, with 14% (ie, 44% of shift workers) having probable SWD based on SWDI. Nurses who worked shift work and/or met SWD criteria were more likely to be younger and unmarried and less likely to have children than day workers and reported greater evening chronotype, insomnia, nightmares, and sleep-related impairment, greater depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress, and perceived stress symptoms, as well as later and more variable sleep midpoint (actigraphy), shorter sleep duration (actigraphy, diaries), and lower sleep efficiency (diaries).

Conclusions: The SWDI is an efficient and valid self-report assessment of DSM-5-defined SWD. Shift work and/or SWD were prevalent and associated with worse sleep and psychosocial health, particularly among nurses with probable SWD.

Citation: Taylor DJ, Dietch JR, Wardle-Pinkston S, et al. Shift Work Disorder Index: initial validation and psychosocial associations in a sample of nurses. J Clin Sleep Med. 2022;18(10):2339-2351.

Keywords: anxiety; depression; insomnia; nurse; posttraumatic stress; shift work; sleep; stress.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

All authors have seen and approved the manuscript. Work for this study was performed at the Department of Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, TX. This study was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, 1R01AI128359-01 (Principal Investigators: Taylor and Kelly). The sponsor had no role in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of data. Dr. Dietch was supported by 2T32MH019938-26A1 (Principal Investigator: Schatzberg). The authors report no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Drake CL , Roehrs T , Richardson G , Walsh JK , Roth T . Shift work sleep disorder: prevalence and consequences beyond that of symptomatic day workers . Sleep. 2004. ; 27 ( 8 ): 1453 – 1462 . - PubMed
    1. Tenkanen L , Sjöblom T , Kalimo R , Alikoski T , Härmä M . Shift work, occupation and coronary heart disease over 6 years of follow-up in the Helsinki Heart Study . Scand J Work Environ Health. 1997. ; 23 ( 4 ): 257 – 265 . - PubMed
    1. Brown JP , Martin D , Nagaria Z , Verceles AC , Jobe SL , Wickwire EM . Mental health consequences of shift work: an updated review . Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2020. ; 22 ( 2 ): 7 . - PubMed
    1. Straif K , Baan R , Grosse Y , et al. . Carcinogenicity of shift-work, painting, and fire-fighting . Lancet Oncol. 2007. ; 8 ( 12 ): 1065 – 1066 . . - PubMed
    1. Flo E , Pallesen S , Magerøy N , et al. . Shift work disorder in nurses–assessment, prevalence and related health problems . PLoS One. 2012. ; 7 ( 4 ): e33981 . - PMC - PubMed

Publication types