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Work Dissatisfaction and Sleep Problems among Canadians in the Latter Half of Life

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2017

Kyla Brown
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of Calgary
Alex Bierman*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of Calgary
*
*Correspondence and requests for reprints should be sent to / La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adresées à : Alex Bierman, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Sociology University of Calgary 2500 University Dr. N.W Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4 ([email protected])

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between work dissatisfaction and sleep problems among Canadian adults in the latter half of life, as well as how gender and social contact moderate this relationship. Data were obtained from the Canadian General Social Survey, Cycle 21 (2007), which sampled adults aged 45 and older in 2007. Analyses focused on individuals with employment as their main activity. Analyses show that work dissatisfaction positively predicts trouble sleeping. There are no significant gender differences in this relationship. Social contact with friends buffers this relationship, but social contact with family does not, and buffering does not vary significantly between men and women. This research contributes to knowledge on sleep problems by showing that work dissatisfaction is adversely associated with sleep problems among Canadians in the latter half of life, but social contact with friends can weaken this deleterious relationship.

Résumé

Cette étude a examiné la relation entre l’insatisfaction au travail et les troubles du sommeil parmi les adultes canadiens dans la seconde moitié de la vie, ainsi que la façon dont le genre et les contacts sociaux modèrent cette relation. Les données proviennent de l’Enquête sociale générale du Canada, cycle 21 (2007), qui a échantillonné les adultes âgés de 45 ans et plus en 2007. Les analyses ont porté sur les personnes dont l’activité principale était l’emploi. Les analyses montrent que l’insatisfaction au travail prédit positivement des troubles du sommeil. Il n’y a pas de différence significative entre les sexes dans cette relation. Le contact social avec les amis amortie cette relation, mais le contact social avec la famille ne le fait pas, et le tamponnement ne varie pas de manière significative entre les hommes et les femmes. Cette recherche contribue à la connaissance des troubles du sommeil en montrant que l’insatisfaction au travail est négativement associée aux troubles du sommeil chez les Canadiens dans la seconde moitié de la vie; cependant, le contact social avec les amis peut s’atténuer cette relation délétère.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2017 

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