Improving the Sleep of Shiftworkers

Night work is an important issue because 1.1 million Australians regularly work at night, and the chances of making an error, having an accident, or being injured at work are almost doubled on night shifts. One of the main reasons that shift workers have such difficulty with night work is that they sleep poorly during the daytime. This project aims to answer a question asked by shift workers but has yet to be addressed by researchers: what is the best time to sleep in the breaks between night shifts? If this project can identify the strategies that maximise sleep during the daytime and thus minimise impairment during night shifts, it will substantially reduce the burden of night work. Please apply if you have a background in Physiology or Psychology, are interested in sleep and circadian rhythms, and would like to contribute to research that will advance our understanding of the human sleep/wake system and improve the lives of shift workers.