The Effects of Circadian Rhythm Disruption on Mental Health and Physiological Responses among Shift Workers and General Population

Mahadir Ahmad, Nur Syafiqa Balqis Md. Din, Ruthra Devi Tharumalay, Normah Che Din, Norhayati Ibrahim, Noh Amit, Nor MF Farah, Rose Azzlinda Osman, Mohamed Faisal Abdul Hamid, Ibnor Azli Ibrahim, Ezad Azraai Jamsari, Mohd Rizal Palil and Sha’ari Ahmad
Additional contact information
Mahadir Ahmad: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Nur Syafiqa Balqis Md. Din: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Ruthra Devi Tharumalay: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Normah Che Din: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Norhayati Ibrahim: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Noh Amit: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Nor MF Farah: Research Center for Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
Rose Azzlinda Osman: Respiratory Unit, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC), Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur 56000, Malaysia
Mohamed Faisal Abdul Hamid: Respiratory Unit, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC), Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur 56000, Malaysia
Ibnor Azli Ibrahim: Faculty of Sharia and Law, Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali, Simpang 347, Jalan Pasar Gadong BE 1310, Brunei
Ezad Azraai Jamsari: Research Centre for Arabic Language and Islamic Civilization, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Malaysia
Mohd Rizal Palil: Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Malaysia
Sha’ari Ahmad: Program of Clinical Psychology & Behavioral Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 19, 1-16

Abstract: Background : The effect of circadian disruption on the bio-psychological clock system has been widely studied. However, the mechanism and the association of circadian rhythm disruption with mental health and physiological responses are still unclear. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effects of circadian rhythm disruption on mental health and physiological responses among shift workers and the general population. Methods : A total of 42 subjects participated in this quasi-experimental study. Participants were divided into a group of shift workers ( n = 20) and a general population group ( n = 22). Polysomnography tests, blood tests (cortisol, triglycerides and glucose), and psychological tests (Abbreviated Profile of Mood States, General Health Questionnaire-28, Working Memory and Processing Speed Indexes of the Wechsler Adult Intelligent Scale (WAIS-IV) were used to examine the effects of circadian rhythm disruption. Results : The results showed a significant relationship between circadian rhythm disruption and mood ( r = 0.305, p < 0.05). The findings of this study also indicated that there was a significant effect of circadian rhythm disruption on mood (F(2,40) = 8.89, p < 0.001, η 2 =0.182), processing speed (F(2,40) = 9.17, p < 0.001, η 2 = 0.186) and working memory (F(2,40) = 4.963, p < 0.01, η 2 = 0.11) in shift workers and the general population. Conclusions : Our findings showed that circadian rhythm disruption affects mood and cognitive performance, but it does not significantly affect psychological wellbeing and physiological responses. Future studies are warranted to examine moderator and mediator variables that could influence the circadian rhythm disruption.

Keywords: circadian rhythm; mood; psychological wellbeing; working memory; processing speed; cortisol; triglycerides; glucose (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/19/7156/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/19/7156/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:19:p:7156-:d:421800

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().