If firefighters are given one of three different caffeine dosage energy drinks before their shift, then the beverage with the most caffeine will provide the largest difference in data because personal experience has led me to believe that higher caffeine levels gave me more perceived energy.
Effectiveness - the perceived quality of the FireFighter’s job when completed
Efficiency - the speed at which a call is completed (calls vary greatly depending on the type of emergency. Speed measurement will be qualitative data given from the firefighter themself)
Energy level - a perceived amount of strength and stamina after a call
Energy Drink - any of various types of beverages typically infused with high amounts of caffeine and/or sugars.
ED - Energy Drink
FF - FireFighter
EL - Energy Level
Firefighters are First Responders and can be the deciding factor in life or death scenarios. Being as efficient, and energetic as possible will be the best scenario for this field. The importance of caffeine in an FF’s average shift is vital. Research has addressed the effects of caffeine, but not the brand of ED that should be consumed for this field.
Throughout my experimental designed research, Adult Firefighter’s both males and females employed at Mountain View Fire & Rescue Fire station in King County, Washington will be given an informed consent form to be filled out before participation in the experiment. A survey will then be filled out before consuming one of three energy drink brands (Monster energy, Bang energy, and rockstar energy) resulted in the best overall energy level. All data recorded will be qualitative data in which is perceived by each individual FF (firefighter) whose identity will be kept anonymous in the final data set. My survey will be a mixed-method design containing both qualitative and quantitative questions. After filling out the survey, firefighters will be provided one of three drinks, and record how they feel after the end of their shift using a similar survey. All participation is 100% voluntary, and participants are free to withdraw from the experiment at any point with no repercussions. My hypothesis is; if FF’s are given 3 different types of ED’s (energy drinks) with different amounts of caffeine, then which brand will produce the greatest results? Addressing the issue of volunteering for this experiment, compensation for volunteering will be a provision of free energy drinks with a variety of flavors. I will be emailing the fire chief and talking to one of the lieutenants of East Pierce Fire & Rescue in hopes of their willingness to participate in my study. The FDA guidelines for caffeine states that “For healthy adults, the FDA has cited 400 milligrams a day.” which is considerably below all energy drink brands that have been selected for the study. In order to maintain this regulation, FF’s will be provided one ED per day. The primary purpose of this study is to narrow the selection of ED brands used by FF’s based on perceived performance.
PRE ASSESSMENT DATA
POST ASSESSMENT DATA
Results Analysis
Avg EL - 4.8 →48%
Avg EL - 7 →70%
22% increase in EL
Due to my data being incomplete, I reject my hypothesis because all data submitted was from one ED brand rather than all three. Making my data insufficient and therefore a successful failure.
Future plans include the further research into other ED brands including Monster Energy, Bang Energy, and various other companies. This all in the hopes of completing my data set and continuing the research project into my college endeavours.
Arazi, Hamid & Hoseinihaji, Marzieh & Eghbali, Ehsan. (2016). The Effects of Different Doses of Caffeine on Performance, Rating of Perceived Exertion and Pain Perception in Teenagers Female Karate Athletes. Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Science. 52. 10.1590/s1984-82502016000400012.
Tayba, Z., Sacre, Y., Attieh, R. et. al Caffeine improves work durability and physical performance in anaerobic exercises among active adults in Tripoli Lebanon. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil 13, 104 (2021).
Sünram-Lea, S., Owen-Lynch, J., Robinson, S., Jones, E., & Hu, H. (2012). The effect of energy drinks on cortisol levels, cognition and mood during a fire-fighting exercise. psychopharmacology, 219 (1), 83–97.