Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep ... But Can’t

No Zzzz: Disputes with co-workers or bosses are robbing people of restorative sleep, according to newly released research by the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The decade-long study purports to be the first to “clarify the link between work and sleep quality for all workers,” as opposed to those that work rotating shifts or have other “unusual” work and sleep arrangements.

The study used two nationally representative surveys to monitor the sleep habits of about 2,300 U.S. adults. By following the same people over time, researchers say they are able to demonstrate how work conditions affect sleep patterns, not the other way around. The analysis “controlled for initial sleep quality, health, pessimism and other confounding factors.” The upshot: People who were regularly upset or bothered because of workplace conflicts were nearly two times as likely to encounter sleep problems than other people. Additionally, researchers “explored how work-family conflict, gender, education and job status affected the relationship between work and sleep.”