Coping strategies used by nurses on night duty∗

Abstract

Two groups of night nurses were subjects in a pilot study to understand factors conducive to tolerance of shift work. Group one were permanent night nurses with several years experience; group two were student night nurses about to start night nurse training on a six-week block system. Individual difference measures and circadian measures for both groups produced a rank order of subjects according to their expected tolerance of shift work. This was then compared to subjective ratings of individuals' ease or difficulty in adapting to night nursing. Differences between individual difference measures and subjective estimation of ease or difficulty were explained by nurses' coping strategies. In-depth interviews revealed that nurses, committed to night working, develop ways of living—day and night—which can offset problems they may have with their physiological and psychological predisposition to night work.

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