Relationship Between Mental Fatigue and Mental Workload Among Nurses

Abstract

Background: Mental fatigue is a very common problem in everyday modern life, during which, individual performance decreases for complex cognitive activities. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the level of mental fatigue and its relationship with mental workload among nurses. Methods: In this descriptive analytical cross-sectional study, 203 nurses were selected from several hospital wards in Kermanshah, Iran. A demographic form, Mental Fatigue Scale (MFS) and NASA-TLX were used to obtain data. The data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient, analysis of variance and independent t-test. Results: The mean (SD) scores for the participants’ mental fatigue and mental workload were 13.24 (7.41) and 69.73 (15.26), respectively. Data analysis did not show any significant relationship between mental fatigue and mental workload (P = 0.120). Conclusions: Generally, most of the nurses perceived having minor problems to no problems with respect to mental fatigue, and workload was not found as a contributing factor to mental fatigue.