The Quality of Sleep and Its Related Factors among Truck Drivers in Kerman

Sleeping is one of the important biological needs of human beings which has an important role in maintaining health and quality of life. Driving is one of the occupational groups in which the quality of sleep is of a great importance for job performance and safety. This study was conducted to evaluate the sleep quality of truck drivers in the city of Kerman، Iran. An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 truck drivers in the transportation terminal of Kerman city in 2011 through simple random sampling. Data collection was performed using a questionnaire containing demographic features and Petersburg sleeping quality questionnaire. ANOVA، t-test، Pearson’s coefficient of correlation and test were used for data analysis. Mean age and driving record of studied drivers were respectively 40. 51±9. 03 and 15. 25±8. 26 years. Mean score of sleeping quality was 7. 58±0. 37 from 21. In whole، 61% of the drivers had unsatisfactory sleep quality. Quality of sleep showed significant relationship with age (P=0. 002) and driving record (P=0. 02). Also there was a significant relationship between age and working hours (P=0. 03). The results of the current study showed that sleep quality of most truck drivers in Kerman is unsatisfactory، and as sleeping is one of the factors that can affect drivers’ health and safety on the roads، we suggest that initiatives should be implemented for alleviating the sleeping problems of drivers.