A survey of college-bound high school graduates regarding circadian preference, caffeine use, and academic performance

Actigraphic sleep dimensions and associations with academic functioning among adolescents

STUDY OBJECTIVES

There is mixed evidence regarding associations of sleep duration with academic functioning in adolescents and a lack of research on other sleep dimensions, particularly using objective sleep measures. We examined associations of multiple actigraphic sleep dimensions with academic functioning among adolescents.

METHODS

Data were from the sleep sub-study of the age 15 wave of the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (n = 774-782; 52% female), a national, diverse sample of teens. Adolescents wore wrist-actigraphs for ~1 week and completed a survey reporting academic performance and school-related behavioral problems. Regression models assessed whether average sleep duration, timing, maintenance efficiency, and SD-variability were associated with self-reported academic functioning in cross-sectional analyses adjusted for demographic characteristics, depressive symptoms, and anxious symptoms.

RESULTS

Later sleep timing (hours) and greater sleep variability (SD-hours) were associated with poorer academic outcomes, including sleep onset variability with higher odds of receiving a D or lower (OR = 1.29), sleep onset (β = -.07), sleep offset (β = -.08), and sleep duration variability (β = -.08) with fewer A grades, sleep offset with lower GPA (β = -.07), sleep offset (OR = 1.11), sleep duration variability (OR = 1.31), and sleep onset variability (OR = 1.42) with higher odds of being suspended or expelled in the past 2 years, and sleep duration variability with greater trouble at school (β = .13). Sleep duration, sleep maintenance efficiency, and sleep regularity index were not associated with academic functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

Later sleep timing and greater sleep variability are risk factors for certain academic problems among adolescents. Promoting sufficient, regular sleep timing across the week may improve adolescent academic functioning.

Paradoxical association between chronotype and academic achievement: eveningness reduces academic achievement through sleep disturbance and daytime sleepiness

There are conflicting reports about the association between chronotype and academic achievement. Eveningness persons tend to have lower academic achievement, but have higher cognitive abilities. We hypothesized that sleep disturbance and daytime sleepiness, which are known to affect academic achievement, will interact with this association. To investigate the association, a sleep survey and covariance structure analysis was performed on high-school students. Among a total of 344 first-year high-school students, 294 students validly completed the questionnaire. The association between the recent change in their academic achievement, chronotype, daytime sleepiness, and sleep disturbance were analyzed. A simple comparison demonstrated that not chronotype but sleep disturbance and excessive daytime sleepiness were significant associated factors. Chronotype affects academic achievement through sleep disturbance and daytime sleepiness. Chronotype did not have a significant total effect on the reduction in academic achievement, whereas morningness had a significant direct effect and a significant indirect inverse effect through better sleep and less daytime sleepiness. This model accounted for 13.0% of the variance of the reduction in academic achievement. When discussing the association between chronotype and academic achievement, the effect of sleep disturbance and daytime sleepiness should be considered. Reducing sleep disturbance and daytime sleepiness with consideration to the chronotype of each person would be beneficial for the improvement of academic achievement.

Self-reported sleep and circadian characteristics predict alcohol and cannabis use: A longitudinal analysis of the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence Study

BACKGROUND

Growing evidence indicates that sleep characteristics predict future substance use and related problems. However, most prior studies assessed a limited range of sleep characteristics, studied a narrow age span, and included few follow-up assessments. Here, we used six annual assessments from the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) study, which spans adolescence and young adulthood with an accelerated longitudinal design, to examine whether multiple sleep characteristics in any year predict alcohol and cannabis use the following year.

METHODS

The sample included 831 NCANDA participants (423 females; baseline age 12-21 years). Sleep variables included circadian preference, sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, the timing of midsleep (weekday/weekend), and sleep duration (weekday/weekend). Using generalized linear mixed models (logistic for cannabis; ordinal for binge severity), we tested whether each repeatedly measured sleep characteristic (years 0-4) predicted substance use (alcohol binge severity or cannabis use) the following year (years 1-5), covarying for age, sex, race, visit, parental education, and previous year's substance use.

RESULTS

Greater eveningness, more daytime sleepiness, later weekend sleep timing, and shorter sleep duration (weekday/weekend) all predicted more severe alcohol binge drinking the following year. Only greater eveningness predicted a greater likelihood of any cannabis use the following year. Post-hoc stratified exploratory analyses indicated that some associations (e.g., greater eveningness and shorter weekend sleep duration) predicted binge severity only in female participants, and that middle/high school versus post-high school adolescents were more vulnerable to sleep-related risk for cannabis use.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings support the relevance of multiple sleep/circadian characteristics in the risk for future alcohol binge severity and cannabis use. Preliminary findings suggest that these risk factors vary based on developmental stage and sex. Results underscore a need for greater attention to sleep/circadian characteristics as potential risk factors for substance use in youth and may inform new avenues to prevention and intervention.

Determinants of Subjective Poor Sleep Quality in Social Media Users Among Freshman College Students

INTRODUCTION

Social media (SM) usage has increased markedly among young adults. It is linked to poor sleep quality (PSQ), a risk factor for mental and physical health concerns. This study identified the determinants of PSQ in SM users among freshman college students.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A cross-sectional design was used and 842 students completed a self-administered questionnaire. Analyses were performed using the χ ² test to examine differences in the characteristics of poor and good sleepers and logistic regression to estimate the risk of PSQ with reference to SM usage patterns.

RESULTS

Around 75.40% (n = 635) of the participants had PSQ. There was a significant difference in the PSQ rate between males (66.3%) and females (79.3%, p < 0.001), those who were physically active (67.2%) and those who were not (82.4%, p < 0.001), those who were mentally depressed (86.5%) and those who were not (61.5%, p < 0.001), and those with anxiety (87.8%) and those without (64.3%, p < 0.001). The risk of PSQ was lower among students who used SM for education (OR = 0.65, CI = 0.42 to 0.99, p = 0.048), had higher laptop usage (OR = 0.67, CI = 0.47 to 0.96, p = 0.03), and had higher SM usage during daytime (OR = 0.46, CI = 0.32 to 0.67, p < 0.001). The risk of PSQ was higher among those who reported SM usage at bedtime (OR = 1.69, CI = 1.01 to 2.81, p = 0.046).

DISCUSSION

Among SM users, PSQ was related to sociodemographic features, lifestyle characteristics, and health-risk factors. Further research is required to confirm these findings.

Effect of chronotype on academic achievement in a sample of Italian University students

Circadian rhythms play an important role in biological function; their expression differs across individuals; three chronotypes are distinguished: Morning- [MT], Evening- [ET], and Neither- [NT] type. MT achieve peak activation in the first part of the day and are generally more conscientious and achievement-oriented than ET, which reach their best during the second half of the day and express a higher intelligence. University class schedules can sometimes conflict with ET circadian preferences, compromising their academic performance compared with their MT classmates. Conversely, MT students, being more aligned with their daily schedule, might be more advantaged in their mental performance. The attitudes and performance of NT students are little considered. No studies to date have investigated academic achievement in relation to chronotype in an Italian student population. To fill this gap, this study examined the relationship between chronotype and academic performance in a population of Motor Science Faculty in Milan, differentiating achievement in theoretical and practical subjects by chronotype. The study population was 423 university students (290 males and 133 females) and categorized by chronotype according to Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) scores. Student transcripts were reviewed to obtain exam grades on three practical and three theoretical subjects. The interaction between MEQ score or chronotypes and mean exam grade was evaluated using one-way ANOVA. The mean grades on the theoretical and practical exams were higher for the MT than for either the ET or the NT students. The NT students (24.8 ± 0.1) had lower mean grades for the theoretical subjects than either the MT (26.3 ± 0.4) or the ET (25.3 ± 0.2) students, while the ET (26.6 ± 0.2) performed worse than either the MT (27.8 ± 0.2) or the NT students (26.9 ± 0.1) on the practical exams. The same trend was observed for the total sample and when subdivided by sex. In the total sample, significant differences in theoretical and practical exam grades were noted between chronotypes: MT vs ET (p < .002, p < .0006) and MT vs NT (p < .04, p < .003). The differences between the males were significant for the theoretical (p < .006, MT vs NT, p < .002) and the practical subjects (MT vs ET p < .004, MT vs NT, p < .01), but no significant differences were noted between the females. Our findings indicate overall better academic achievement by the MT students, whereas the NT had lower exam grades for the theoretical subjects and the ET performed worse on the practical exams. We speculate that the higher intelligence expressed by the ET students might have helped them compensate the disadvantage on the theoretical but not on practical exams, in which the effect of misalignment between circadian preferences and university class schedule was more evident.