Lifestyle and quality of work life of seafarers onboard

Seafarers' work is subject to many demands of work stress, but few studies analyse the quality of work life (QoL-W). Our research, using an online questionnaire, analyses the differences in QoL-W and in some job demands as a function of lifestyle habits (more on board, same way/no use, more on land) in a sample of Italian seafarers. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a tailored online questionnaire. The data refer to 224 participants. The questionnaire collected: QoL-W (work and physical strain, burnout, sleep deprivation, job satisfaction); job demands (cognitive demands, work routine, negative work environment); lifestyle habits (cigarette smoking alcohol consumption, use of psychotropic drugs, working out, healthy diet, social contact maintenance, personal hobbies, city visits, and gambling). One-way ANOVAs were performed to compare the effect of the three categories (more on board, same way/no use, more on land) of lifestyle habits on QoL-W and job demands. The initial results of the study show that QoL-W are lower among those who have a less protective lifestyle on board. In addition, perceptions of job demands are higher among those with less protective on-boarding lifestyles. Data collection is in progress. The results of our study have important implications for future research and implementation of policies that could affect the quality of life of seafarers on board. Indeed, life on board appears to pose a greater risk to seafarers' occupational health than life on land.