The Influence of Sleep Duration and Sleep Problems on Health: Do Types of Work Shift Matter?

Lei Chai , University of Toronto
Scott Schieman, University of Toronto

In this paper, using four waves (2011-2017) of the Canadian Work Stress and Health study along with fixed effects models, we ask: (1) how do sleep duration and sleep problems associate with health (i.e., physical symptoms and psychological distress) over time? (2) Do types of work shift moderate those relationships? And (3) do any observed patterns differ for men and women. Our preliminary results indicate that short sleep duration (i.e., fewer than seven hours) was associated with higher levels of distress and physical symptoms for men and women. Additionally, we find that types of work shift moderated the relationship between sleep duration and health. However, the patterns varied based on types of health and gender. These various patterns had also been observed for the relationship between sleep problems and health. This study adds complexity to the literature on sleep and health.

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 Presented in Session 5. Health & Mortality 1