US vs Europe: hours in lab

[DAWN C. GORDON]

  Of the European graduate students I've known at my university
(from U.K. and Germany), all have worked long hours at the lab.  It
seemed to me it was a work habit they brought with them, rather than
acquired here.  I myself work long hours infrequently, such as when
a deadline has to be met.  I sometimes feel guilty for not putting
in long days and weekends all the time.
    DAWN
In article <lab_sakano-2002961332290001 at lsa6mac19.berkeley.edu> lab_sakano at maillink.berkeley.edu (Linda Kingsbury) writes:
>In article <9601198247.AA824750380 at nas.edu>, jjoy at nas.edu ("Janet Joy") wrote:
>
>>     It seems that American students have little choice but to work to
>>   extremes since they are compared to each other in the job market.   I
>>   wish I could believe that the American worker bees learned so much more
>>   and were so much more productive than their counterparts in other
>>   countries, but my experiences don't really support that idea. . . .
>>   although I admit anecdotal data should be taken with a grain of salt.
>>   Maybe my experiences are atypical.   My suspicion is that Americans are
>>   just busier, but neither more creative, wise, or good at science than
>>   scientists in other countries.
>
>An interesting question...do longer hours make a person more productive?
>Up to a point they may.  On the other hand, overwork is well known to
>decrease creativity, accuracy, etc.  Are Americans overworked, or
>Europeans underworked?  What is the ideal number of hours/week for best
>productivity?  What, if any, extenuating circumstances should be
>addressed?  Commute time?  Family?
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