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Abstract

The U.S. Bureau of Mines has been involved in the study of guidelines for the design of shiftwork schedules. One popular suggestion offered by shiftwork researchers and consultants is to establish schedules that rotate in a forward direction (Day to Afternoon to Nights) rather than backward (Day to Night to Afternoon). This paper analyzes the two primary premises behind these suggestions. Data on subjective sleep times collected from both forward and backward rotators, indicate that the Forward rotation may not be more beneficial than the Backward rotation. Although the WORK start times of a forward schedule parallels the direction for faster biological adjustment, SLEEP times do not. Also, the between-shift intervals for forward direction shifts are not necessarily more conducive for more flexible shift schedule design given the sleep behaviors of shiftworkers.

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Forward versus Backward Shift Rotation

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