Job Stress and Mental Health among Permanent Night Workers

• Published in: Journal of Occupational Health 2001-11, Vol.43 (6), p.301-306
• Main Authors: Fujino, Yoshihisa, Mizoue, Tetsuya, Izumi, Hiroyuki, Kumashiro, Masaharu, Hasegawa, Tetsuya, Yoshimura, Takesumi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Garbage worker; GHQ; Job stress; Mental disorders; Mental health; Night worker; NIOSH generic job stress questionnaire; Occupational stress; Questionnaires; Shift work; Workers; Workloads
• ISSN: 1341-9145; 1348-9585; 1348-9585
• DOI: 10.1539/joh.43.301

Shift work, including rotating shift night work, and permanent night work, causes mental health problems. In addition to the shift work system, job stress and individual background factors also relate to the mental health of workers, but details of job stress and mental health problems among permanent night workers are still unclear. The purpose of this study is to examine the amount of job stress and the mental health problems among permanent night workers, and also to examine what factors should determine the mental health condition of the permanent night worker. The study group consisted of 435 garbage workers, and 384 workers completed the questionnaire, which included the NIOSH generic job stress questionnaire and 30 items of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Workers with a GHQ score of 7 or more were defined as having psychiatric disturbance. Multiple logistic regression was performed to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) for psychiatric disturbance, including age, type of work, working year, marital status, and some scales of the NIOSH generic job stress questionnaire. The married workers were less likely to have mental health problems than single workers (OR=0. 49, 95% Cl=0. 29-0. 85). The mental health of the workers with lowerjob control was better than the workers with higher job control (OR=0. 46, 95% Cl=0. 26-0. 79). The workers with a higher workload were more likely to have mental health problems (OR=2. 86, 95% Cl=1. 76-4. 67). This study showed that person with a high workload, high job control, and who were single had increased ORs for psychiatric disturbance among permanent night workers. (J Occup Health 2001, 43:301-306)