Evaluating the Roles of Recovery Sleep and Emotion Regulation in Fire Service Shift Workers

Abstract

Sleep, stress-related processes, and emotion regulation are all implicated in mood disturbance and mental health difficulties. The relationships between these variables are especially important for individuals working in public safety professions. Fire service workers are regularly exposed to traumatic events and occupational stressors such as shift work. A majority of firefighters and paramedics endorse sleep deprivation and are at an increased risk of mental health problems. Several days of recovery sleep following sleep loss is required for a return to baseline functioning. Although there is a bidirectional relationship between emotion regulation and sleep, little is known about the relationship between recovery sleep and emotion regulation in terms of negative mood outcomes. This dissertation project aims to better understand the relationship between sleep, stress, and emotion regulation. More specifically, this project encapsulates (a) a review of the recent literature regarding sleep-related mechanisms, characteristics, and treatments in posttraumatic stress disorder as well as (b) findings from a study examining the relationship between recovery sleep and emotion regulation strategies in fire service shift workers. This is the first study to our knowledge to examine sleep patterns in fire service shift workers during the recovery period using gold-standard, prospective measures of sleep. Findings suggest greater average sleep quantity and efficiency are associated with lower average negative mood. Additionally, emotion regulation style moderates the relationship between daily recovery sleep and next day negative mood. Our results further inform our understanding of the interaction between sleep, emotion regulation, and negative mood and may help guide development and implementation of interventions for individuals in public safety professions exposed to traumatic and occupational stressors.