[lbo-talk] No road rage, but trains are stressful ...

[ravi]

At around 27/9/06 10:48 am, Jordan Hayes wrote:
> [ Relaxed commute?  Ha!  --JMH ]
> 
> Rail commuters like to brag that they have cushy commutes compared with
> people who drive to work -- they can nap, read a book and work on
> laptops. But commuting by train also is stressful, a new study has
> found. And the longer the commute, the more stress levels increase.
> 
> Researchers studied 208 commuters taking trains from New Jersey to
> Manhattan. They measured the commuters' saliva for the stress hormone
> cortisol at the end of the commute and once again the following weekend
> at the commuters' homes. They also analyzed questionnaires filled out by
> the commuters and their spouses, and asked each participant to proofread
> a document at the end of the commute.
> 
> They found that, minute by minute, physiological and psychological
> stress rise in train commuters. At the end of the commute, which
> averaged 81 minutes, participants were less able to complete the simple
> proofreading task, used to measure the aftereffects from stress.
> 

I am afraid I don't get the point.

a) What was the stress level curve on the return journey? (most people

   get stressed going into work)

b) What was the stress level for off-peak commuters?

c) What was the stress level for the crowd trying to get through the

   tunnels by car, instead?

Without such information, the above is not very useful and the
conclusions unsustainable. In particular, the bragging (referred to)
might be entirely justified.

	--ravi

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