Performance on a dual driving simulation and subtraction task following sleep restriction

A novel task, combining simulated driving with subtraction, was compared in 26 participants ages 18 to 26 years (M=20.6, SD = 2.3; 13 men). After two nights of 8.5 hr. in bed, participants performed a 30-min. driving and subtraction task followed by a 10-min. Psychomotor Vigilance Task. These tasks were repeated after two more nights of 8.5 hr. time in bed for the control group and 5 hours and 3 hours time in bed for the restricted group. The sensitivity of the task to moderate sleep loss was supported because impairment was seen on several dual-task variables whereas impairment was not observed on the Psychomotor Vigilance Task.