The Relationship Between Sleep Quality, Stress and Academic Performance in University Students. University students are renowned for their sub-optimal sleeping habits and high stress levels and it is estimated that approximately 27% of student’s report suffering from a sleep related disorder (Gaultney, 2010). Sleep is an essential biological function that aids in recover, and learning and memory consolidation (Walker & Stickgold, 2004). A lack of sleep quality has been considered to have a strong relationship with a variety of negative consequences that include increased stress levels, psychological disorders and reduced academic performance (Fortunato & Harsh, 2006; Marhefka, 2011). The relationship between stress and sleep quality is thought to be bi-directional, meaning stress influences sleep quality and vice versa (Lund et al. 2010). Stress can be a behavioural or psychological reaction characterised by internal turmoil that has the potential to impair daily life functioning. Even in minor forms stress has the potential to reduce cognitive function, judgement and insight, all which are thought to be essential for a student’s success (Arnsten & Shansky, 2004). University factors that may influence stress levels may come from assignment deadlines, not understanding concepts and moratorium about the future. For the purpose of this study stress will be measured as either high or low in accordance to the DASS-21 (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1994). The University environment is undoubtedly competitive and this has the potential to place large amounts of pressure on students to succeed. This pressure can often result in stress due to the impact that a student’s grades can have on them being accepted into post-graduate program... ... middle of paper ... ...literature appears to indicate an interdimensional relationship between academic performance, sleep quality and stress. However, a concern within the literature is a lack of follow ups and to my knowledge no studies have focused on academic performance, sleep quality and stress with an Australian University sample. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between sleep quality, stress and academic performance and to determine what is the best predictor of academic performance using an Australian University sample. It was hypothesised that there will be a strong correlation between sleep quality and stress. It was also hypothesised that higher stress levels will be associated with lower GPA scores. Lastly, it was hypothesised that there will be a difference between high stress individuals and low stress individuals on academic performance.
Researchers have found a way to connect sleep with education. Gary Scarpello who wrote "Lack Of Sleep Could Be Trouble For CTE Students” , did a research study with liberty mutual showed that teens had an average of 7.2 hours of sleep on school nights and 33 to 75 % of all students have sleep problems. In the article it had stated that not getting enough sleep can cause impaired hand eyed coordination, reaction time and brief mental lapses. (Scarpello). The same researchers also found out that Sleep helps restores brain functions such as alertness, metabolism, and memory and regulate hormones (Scarpello). Researchers Mary A. Carskardon and A.R. Wolfson studied 3,120 Rhode Island children. They had figured out that college students who slept more than nine hours a night had a gr...
Stress is the biggest factor for sleeping disorders. A lot of students have trouble sleeping at night because of stress. Their workload, financial worries, and self-esteem give them stress through out the day keeping them up at night when they are trying to sleep. In a study done by Chen, Lee, Rogers, and Wuertz (2013), 103 female college students sleeping patterns were studied in relation to stress. It was found that most of them experienced three nights with bad sleep a week and 68% of them were classified as insomniacs (p. 854). Because of this the female’s who participated also reported
This is also proven by a study, which shows that students who perform worse on their exams seem to be more stressed and suffer from poor sleep quality (Ahrberg, Dresler, Niedermaier, Steiger, & Genzel, 2012). For instance, student A is a freshman at Ball State University. This student only sleeps for 6 hours because of bad sleeping habits and later on he sleeps for only 4 hours because of the new environment which has many factors that affect his sleep schedule such as social life, school activities or extracurricular activities. Then sleep deprivation is starting to affect him. He have a test the next day and studied the whole night and only slept for 2 hours. The next day, while he was having the test, he started to feel very tired, sleepy and stressed. He couldn’t concentrate on the test so he failed the test. He started to feel more stressed because of bad grades which might make him take the course again. He couldn’t sleep for more than 4 hours and these bad cycle repeats. Moreover, high stress could also affect the emotion of the students. It can also cause depression which can significantly decrease the academic performance and grade point average of a student. Stress caused by sleep deprivation can really have a big effect on
Many college students are affected by sleep deprivation. Our youth have yet come to realize how much sleep plays a valuable role in one’s day. Some causes of sleep deprivation ranges from stress to poor time management. Scientifically speaking, “sleep deprivation exists when sleep is insufficient to support adequate alertness, performance, and health, either because of reduced total sleep time or fragmentation of sleep by brief arousals.” (Pressman) Most college students are unaware that lack of sleep cause many of their illnesses. College students that are sleep deprived usually suffer from a range of psychiatric symptoms. I surveyed 8 people at Alabama State University and out of those 8, 6 of the participants were sleep deprived. Sleep deprivation can be extremely harmful to college students and has loads of negative effects.
The effects of sleep deprivation at the physical and mental level are not the only issue; students are having
Research shows that sleep is a necessity in order for someone to be able to perform at their maximum potential. College students are no exception to the rule and are often at a greater risk to suffer from conditions that accompany sleep deprivation. Regardless of the time period, a college student must be well rested in order to perform at his or her best in terms of physical performance, memorization capabilities, and test-taking abilities. Also, without adequate sleep, the person will be more susceptible to illnesses, both mental and physical. In conclusion, I believe that sleep deprivation among college students is extremely common and has a direct effect on how well that student will perform or feel.
Sleep loss and shifting sleep patterns are known to be widespread across college campuses throughout the United States and the world at large. Yet, while many studies exist relating sleep to performance, a much smaller amount of studies focus on the Through analysis of these sources as they would prove useful when researching and writing upon the idea of sleep and its correlation to academic performance it was found that a paper titled “Sleep-Wake Patterns and Academic Performance in University Students”, which was presented to the European Conference on Educational Research, is overall the most useful source represented to research the topic.
Preliminary Thesis Statement: Sleep deprivation has detrimental effects on the health and academic performance of students.
Suen, L.K., Hon, K.L. & Tam, W.W. (2008). Association between sleep behavior and sleep-related factors among university students in Hong Kong. Chronobiology International, 25, 760-775.
Sleep deprivation is prevalent throughout a college students’ career. The difference between a student that gets an “A” over a “B” can be the amount of sleep they receive. In other cases, we can jeopardize ourselves from sleep deprivation without realizing it. Even instances where some students may stay up to complete an assignment or play video games, only to succumb to sleepiness the following morning. Sleepiness is the inadequate amount of sleep which can cause drowsiness. It is prominent in fifty percent of college students, while it is only predominant in thirty-five percent of adults and adolescents (Hershner & Chervin 73). In other words, people exhibit symptoms from sleep deprivation, which in turn affects them in college. The symptoms
The college experience is of great value in providing emerging adults with a structured environment in which they can gain the knowledge, skills, and independence to chart their own path, become successfully employed, and contribute to society. However, this experience comes at great cost. A potential obstacle to maximizing success in college is the high prevalence of sleep deprivation, and irregular sleep patterns. Buboltz, Brown, and Soper (2001) reported that 15% of college students are unsatisfied with their quality of sleep. Many factors may contribute to the disturbances of sleep habits in college students. Late night studying, all-nighters, parties, social obligations, work, and alcohol and/or drug abuse all likely play a role. Research has indicated that students’ poor sleep patterns is linked to increased tension, irritability, depression, confusion, and generally lower life satisfaction (Pilcher, Ginter, Sadowsky 1997). Students who sleep eight hours nightly but shift their sleep wake cycle by two hours experience increased feelings of depression, reduced affability, and difficulty in concentrating (Taub, Berger 1974). Students who regularly sleep later on the weekend than they do during the week do not adjust to the changed schedule but they develop chronic psychomotor slowing concentration problems, they also experience increased irritability
Gregory.J.R, Frazer.H. (1986). An Academic Stress Scale: Identification and Rated Importance Of Academic Stressors, 59, 2-6.
A survey was done to find out that “stress might be getting in the way of sleep”. The survey was towards young adults who received less than the required amount of sleep, which is seven to nine hours of sleep a night. These adults received roughly 6.7 hours of sleep a night. A majority of the group reported that stress caused them to not be able to get a good nights rest. They would lie on their bed, wide-awake and have their minds running constantly thinking and
While it is recommended to get eight hours of sleep before taking an exam, students are so anxious to pass their tests that they stay up all night rather than getting well-needed rest. Cameron C. Weaver of the Oklahoma State University and Steven P. Gilbert from Minn esota State University did a study that showed “Lower sleep quality is associated with lower academic performance” (300). This analysis concludes that students who have low sleep quality show a lower performance in academics than students who have normal sleep
Sleep plays a vital role in a person’s mental well-being. Sleeping affects how well people think, react, work, learn, and get along with others. While a person is sleeping, his brain is preparing to help him learn and remember information. A good night’s sleep enhances learning and problem solving skills. It is very important for the students to have sound sleep as it can improve their concentration, memory and creativity. Furthermore, having enough sleep increases the ability to m...