Sleep Disorder: psychophysiological implications for driver fatigue and or the development of a fatigue counter measure device

Funding or Partner Organisation: National Health & Medical Research Council (NHMRC Australian Clinical Research Fellowship)

Start year: 2001

Summary: The general aim was to study psychological and physiological associations in subjects during fatigue and its associations with sleep disorders for purposes of: assessing data for fatigue management and for potential of incorporation into fatigue countermeasure technology. Doctoral data was written for publication during the training fellowship and NHMRC support acknowledged. The PhD data and ideas utilised for driver fatigue assessment formed the basis of this continued training fellowship research. Data collected to date has incorporated both field and laboratory work. The field data acquired (in over n=120 professional drivers (shift workers) and in over n=80 non-professional drivers (with and without sleep disorder) show associations of anxiety, mood and other lifestyle parameters to driver fatigue. Physiological data collected via referrals from a local hospital and local recruitment is currently undergoing final analysis. Electroencephalography and other physiological data was collected in sleep disrupted (insomnia and sleep apnea) & control individuals : comprising approximately n=45 control drivers, n=15 shiftworker nurses and approx. n= 20 apnea individuals. The study has been important to enhance the understanding of factors impcating on driver safety and an improved understanding of driver fatigue. The results will provide insight into problem areas and help reduce fatigue-related socio-economic burden on society as well as be uitilised for developing educational programs especially to understand the psychological and behavioural traits associated with fatigue, in order to identify potentially risky drivers.

Publications:

Lal, S & Bekiaris, E 1970, 'The reliability of sensing fatigue from neurophysiology', AusWireless 2006: International Conference on Wireless Broadband and Ultra Wideband Communications Proceedings, International conference on Wireless Broadband and Ultra Wideband Communication, UTS, Sydney, Australia, pp. 1-4.

Lal, SKL & Craig, A 2005, 'Reproducibility of the spectral components of the electroencephalogram during driver fatigue', International Journal of Psychophysiology, vol. 55, no. 2, pp. 137-143.
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FOR Codes: Occupational health (excl. economic development as, Behaviour and health, NATURAL SCIENCES, TECHNOLOGIES AND ENGINEERING, Scientific instrumentation, Blood disorders, Biological Psychology (Neuropsychology, Psychopharmacology, Physiological Psychology), Medical and Health Sciences not elsewhere classified, Comparative Physiology, Comparative physiology , Cognitive neuroscience, Other health sciences not elsewhere classified

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.