Sleep
has become a big deal in working life. Sleeping is no longer seen as
a sign of weakness among competitive colleagues. Apple introduced a Night
Shift feature on its devices earlier this year, as consumers recognised
that stimuli such as your screen’s backlight can affect your sleep quality.
Research shows that more sleep can lead to us earning more money. A US
study has found that in areas where the sun sets earlier, people
sleep for longer – and this translates into higher earnings. In the long
term, just one extra hour of sleep a week increases wages by 4.9%. So if you
live in an area that gets darker earlier, you should be richer. But don’t move
house just yet – the higher wages correspond almost exactly with inflated house
prices. As Jeffrey Shrader, one of the authors of the study, puts it: “If you
want to sleep more, there are better ways to do it than moving house – just buy
better curtains.”
This goes against conventional economics. Each extra hour of sleep should be
taken away from working time. So how can sleeping earn you money? The answer is
productivity. “The biggest effects come through employees who work on
commission,” says Shrader. “If you go to work well rested, you are livelier and
happier, and can sell more to increase your earnings.”
Even small amounts of sleep deprivation can have large effects.
Another study found that sleeping six hours a night for two weeks
produced the same results in cognitive tests as being totally sleep-deprived
for up to two days straight. But a mid-afternoon nap can help. “Naps are
great,” says sleep psychologist Dr Hans Van Dongen. If you struggle to get
eight hours of sleep a night, a siesta can have a “reset” effect, and your
productivity improves afterwards. “Roughly speaking, an hour’s nap can make up
for an hour in lost sleep at night.”
So, the introduction of nap pods at Google’s headquarters does have some
science behind it. Although once you start sleeping at work, what is the point
in going home at all? Even short naps of up to half an hour can partially
offset the productivity lost from chronic sleep deprivation. You snooze, you
win.
But the most important workplace revolution would be much more flexible hours.
Most of us fall into two broad “chronotype” categories: morning and evening
types. Rigidly early start times at work are fine for larks, but a third of us
are night owls, who are likely to earn up to 5% less as a result of being tired
at work.
Lack of sleep has already been shown to be worse for productivity than being
overweight or underweight. So, why are you still reading this? You should go
back to bed.
Question 1: [2,5 POINTS]
Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down
which part of the text justifies your answer.
a) The
best way to get more sleep is to move to a new home.
b) Sleeping
more makes employees produce more.
c) The
less you sleep at night, the longer you need to sleep during the day to get the
same effect.
d) Google
is about to introduce places in their offices for the workers to have a nap.
e) You
may earn less if you are a nocturnal person.
Question 2: [1,5 POINTS]
Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and
definitions given.
a) characteristic
(par.1)
b) salary
(par.2)
c) to
remove (par.3)
d) to
make better (par.4)
e) to
recompense (par.5)
Question 3: [2 POINTS]
Choose the most suitable answer (a, b or c) according to the text
1. You
sleeping quality…
a) affects
your colleagues at work.
b) is
said to be related to being overweighted..
c) is
affected by how you use technology at night.
2. Productivity
is linked to….
a) mainly
to your weight.
b) only
to sleeping
c) both
your sleep and your weight.
3. In
places where it gets dark earlier….
a) people
sleep more hours.
b) houses
are cheaper.
c) you’d
better use curtains.
4. Working
shifts….
a) Are
more tiring for workers.
b) are
the change needed.
c) are
only for nocturnal people.
No comments:
Post a Comment