Hardiness and tenure in shiftwork as predictive variables for coping with shiftwork

Abstract

The aim of this study was to establish whether hardiness and tenure are predictive variables for coping with shiftwork. The extent of shiftwork and shiftwork research has expanded internationally in the past decade. It has been established that shiftwork has a negative effect on shiftworkers who are predisposed to certain strain symptoms such as inefficiency, impaired health and domestic problems. However, certain inter individual differences do moderate coping with shiftwork through a process of cognitive and behavioural protective acts which modify the stressful situation and neutralise the experience of problems. Using questionnaires (Biographical, Hardiness Index and Coping with Shiftwork Questionnaire), a sample group of 75 cases was analysed. A 95 percent confidence level was used throughout with a multiple stepwise regression analysis computed. The significant r2 value = 0.18. Focus group discussions were conducted to· add qualitative information to the areas of social, domestic, work and sleep problems as well as coping strategies. The predictive variables were regressed onto a number of criterion variables, namely coping with shiftwork, work, sleep, domestic and social problems, as well as engagement and diseng.agement strategies including both strategies in all four domains (work, sleep, social and domestic). It was found that hardiness and tenure are not predictive variables for coping with shiftwork. However, hardiness, commitment and challenge are predictors for disengagement strategies so that hardy, challenged and committed individua1s will use less disengagement coping strategies and more specifically, use less domestic disengagement coping strategies. The research established hardiness as an additional personality variable linked to a primary scale of coping with shiftwork, namely disengagement. The longer term adjustment of shiftworkers (through tenure) was not established. Recommendations were made for targeted shiftwork coping programmes and more extensive classical shiftwork research in South Africa