The indirect effects of sleep hygiene and environmental factors on depressive symptoms in college students
Section snippets
Sleep environment
Fundamental to college students’ sleep are both their sleep environment and their sleep hygiene practices. The sleep environment is typically defined by the physical space and related aspects of the context in which sleep occurs (eg, noise, temperature). One aspect of the sleep environment that is often overlooked is the presence of a roommate. According to the American Council on Education, approximately 20% of college students live in residence halls, and research suggests that students
Sleep problems and depressive symptoms
Extensive research supports clear associations between poor sleep quality and depressive symptoms in college-aged students.6, 22 For example, decreased sleep has been found to be associated with increased depressive symptoms.23 In addition, students who reported both high levels of sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms endorsed higher levels of anxiety and poorer cognitive and physical functioning.6 Students with elevated depressive symptoms have also reported greater levels of fatigue
The current study
The current study sought to examine the associations between predictors of poor sleep quality (ie, sleep environment, sleep hygiene practices, pre-bedtime media use), sleep quality, and depressive symptoms in a sample of 335 college students. We posited that poor sleep quality might serve as a more general mechanism to explain associations between an array of environmental factors (ie, environmental noise, screen time) and sleep hygiene behaviors and their predictive links to depressive
Participants
The mean age of the current sample (n = 335, 77% female) was 19.9 years (SD = 1.9), and the majority of participants were white (66%), with 20% Asian or Pacific Islander, 6% multiracial, 5% Latino, 2% African American, and 1% Native American. Participants were predominately first- and second-year students, 34% and 30%, respectively, with 21% reporting as juniors, 14% seniors, and 1% in their fifth year or beyond. Finally, 23% of participants reported living off-campus, and 50% reported having
Group differences and bivariate associations
Overall, the reported levels of depressive symptoms and poor sleep quality are consistent with past studies on college populations.2, 35 Table 1 presents comparison of means as a function of residential status (ie, living alone or with a roommate). Although respondents who lived with a roommate reported significantly higher levels of environmental noise (d = .21) and poorer physiological sleep hygiene (d = − .32), these differences were modest in size, and the 2 groups were generally comparable
Discussion
Although direct associations between poor sleep quality and depressive symptoms have been well-documented,6 the current study was one of the first to examine the direct and indirect associations that the sleep environment and sleep hygiene practices might have on the association between college students’ depressive symptoms and sleep disturbance. The findings suggested that several environmental and sleep hygiene factors were associated with college students’ poor sleep quality, which were, in
Limitations
Several limitations in the current study must be acknowledged. First, the cross-sectional results preclude any examination of their directionality. Future studies should examine these associations longitudinally to better ascertain the direction of effects. Second, all measures are self-report, increasing the potential for response bias. Future studies should augment self-report surveys with additional methods (ie, daily diaries, actigraphy) to more thoroughly test the presented model. Third,
Conclusion
The current study provides an important first step toward improving college students’ mental health by examining their sleep hygiene practices as well as environmental disturbances to their sleep. Although sleep hygiene-related interventions have been tailored to college populations,12 such interventions are not widespread. Future research on sleep-related interventions for college students remains an area for growth and provides important opportunities to study the role that sleep plays in
Disclosure
Dr. Peltz has nothing to disclose.
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