Recovery of Sleep, Performance, and Mood Following 38 Hours of Sleep Deprivation Using Naps as a Countermeasure

• Main Authors: Caldwell, J. L, Caldwell, John A., Jr, Colon, Jose, Ruyak, Peggy S, Ramspott, Stephanie
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Subjects: ALERTNESS; ARMY PERSONNEL; ARMY RESEARCH; EMOTIONS; HYPNOTICS AND SEDATIVES; MOOD; NAPS; PE62787A; PERFORMANCE(HUMAN); Psychology; RECOVERY; REST; REST AND RECOVERY; SLEEP; SLEEP DEPRIVATION; Stress Physiology; STRESS(PSYCHOLOGY); WAKEFULNESS

In certain situations, soldiers must continue to perform their duties over an extended period of time, knowing that their regular sleep period will be missed and their time awake will extend well past 24 hours. Although equipment may be able to operate over extended work hours, personnel are not capable of continuing for days without proper rest and recovery. However, during the times when extended work hours are required, soldiers must find a way to maintain alertness in order to carry out their duties. When one chooses a countermeasure to aid soldiers' performance, the decision is based on how well the method will increase alertness and performance. However, one must also examine how a person will recover from the countermeasure, how long it will take before he/she is ready to continue the work schedule, and what consequences will occur due to the countermeasure. Many studies are aimed at how well countermeasures work in the short run, but neglect to examine the aftereffects.