The Police Stress and Health Program

The Actigraph

An actigraph is a motion logger that looks like a wrist watch without dials. It helps to measure a person's sleep-wake cycle. On an annual basis, participants of the Police Stress and Health Program are asked to wear an actigraph for seven consecutive days, except while bathing or swimming. The sleep-wake information provided by the actigraph, together with the information collected in the PDA (Palm), will allow us to assess the impact of fatigue on performance and reaction time in police work.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. I am not concerned about my own confidentiality. Can I wear the actigraph at the academy anyway?

2. What will happen if I press the button on the actigraph?

3. What if I forget to put the actigraph on after taking it off at the academy or to bathe or swim?

Answers to FAQ

1. I am not concerned about my own confidentiality. Can I wear the actigraph at the academy anyway?

In order to preserve the confidentiality of all of our participants, we prefer that nobody participating in the study wear the actigraph during academy hours. Please be sure to remove your actigraph when instructed, and to make a note of removal and replacement times in your sleep diary.

2. What will happen if I press the button on the actigraph?

Nothing will happen; we are not using that feature on the actigraph.

3. What if I forget to put the actigraph on after taking it off at the academy or to bathe or swim?

Put the actigraph back on immediately after remembering to do so. Be sure to mark the times you removed and replaced your actigraph in your sleep diary.

Study Timeline | Clinical Interviews | Psychophysiology | Questionnaires
| Actigraph | PDA (Palm) | Genetics