According to a study that will be surprising to…well…no one, we aren’t getting enough sleep. Whether this lack of sleep is work–related or due to the fact that we cannot tear ourselves away from distracting technology, we simply are not getting the recommended amount.
Doesn’t seem like a big deal, right?
It can be, according to researchers from the University of Zurich who have determined that this lack of sleep can lead to risky behaviors (imagine a long-haul truck driver forgoing sleep as a challenge to drive across the country in a shorter amount of time).
The study, which observed four men between the ages of 18 and 28 years old, determined that riskier behaviors occurred in the weeks with fewer hours of sleep than in those weeks where the participants slept for at least eight hours a night.
According to the researchers, risky behavior was measured in terms of participants’ selecting between a scenario where they received an amount of money tied to a specific outcome versus a scenario where they were paid a lower sum regardless of the outcome.
Those with fewer hours of sleep, unsurprisingly, selected the offer with the promise of more money than the scenario offering the guaranteed amount.
So while risky behavior may increase in relation to lack of sleep, it seems an entirely separate study is necessary to define risky behavior. After all, one man’s long haul sleepless trip across the country might be another man’s sleep-deprived trip to the store without a shopping list.
Do you take more risks in relation to the amount of sleep you get?
|