Self-efficacy and sleep problems

The present pilot study investigates the relationship between general self-efficacy (GSE) and sleep behavior in school-age children (between 5 and 10 years). Children with chronic insomnia (n = 54) had significantly lower GSE scores (p < 0.001) compared to a sample of healthy school-age children (n = 54) matched concerning age (M = 7.5 years) and gender (59.3 % boys, 40.7 % girls). In general, higher sleep disturbance scores were associated with lower GSE (r _s = −0.37, p < 0.001). The highest negative correlations with GSE were found for frequent night wakings (r _s = −0.38, p < 0.001), sleep anxiety (r _s = −0.35, p < 0.001), and sleep onset delay (r _s = −0.30, p < 0.01). In a multiple stepwise regression model, frequency of night wakings (ß = −0.33, p < 0.01) and sleep onset delay (ß = −0.26, p < 0.01) predicted GSE scores of children; sleep parameters accounted for 20 % of the variance in GSE scores. All in all, the present findings provide evidence for an association between GSE and sleep behavior, which are in line with previous results in other age groups and concerning other psychological constructs, e. g., depression and anxiety. Future studies should further investigate this topic in order to improve effective intervention programs for children.