The Effect of Sleep Deprivation on Adolescents

Does the amount of sleep adolescents get cause or contribute depression and/or anxiety? I became interested in the topic of sleep because I have not been getting enough of it myself and I wanted to know if it was affecting the way I think. I feel that knowing the contribution that sleep has on the brain development of adolescents would help me understand if my lack of sleep is contributing to my anxiety. In addition to that, studying sleep's effect on brain development might help the education system improve the way they teach children with the work they give them to do outside of class.

Natural Sciences

Allen, Nicholas B, et al. Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Adolescent Cognitive-Behavioral Sleep Interventions. Clinical Child & Family Psychology Review, Vol. 20 Issue 3, September 2017, p227-249. 23p. Academic Search Complete, doi: 10.1007/s10567-017-0234-5

The article states that most youths get around 9 hours of sleep when unrestricted and less than 8 hours of sleep when restricted, typically on school nights. Adolescents are recommended to get 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night and the article proclaimed that approximately 30% of adolescents suffer from a sleep disorder being either insomnia or delayed sleep phase disorder (DSPS). The article also states that adolescents are susceptible to the same physiological, psychological, and environmental vulnerabilities that cause these disorders as adults as well as still developing responsibilities and social interests, still developing as human beings, and the amount of hormonal changes leading to a perfect storm of sleep imbalance.

The article was last updated in September of 2017 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of sleep on mental illnesses. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with the Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences a part of the University of Melbourne and Oregon Research Institute, several of which have written other credible articles. Since the article focused mostly on the results of their meta-analysis the results may vary from others who recreate it but not by enough to discredit this source and was peer reviewed to add credibility. This article exists to inform of the connection between sleep and some mental disorders.

Boynton, Marcella H., Leslie A. Lytle, and Deshira D. Wallace. Multilevel analysis exploring the links between stress, depression, and sleep problems among two-year college students. Journal of American College Health. Vol. 65 Issue 3, April 2017, p187-196. 10p. Academic Search Complete, doi: 10.1080/07448481.2016.1269111

This article covers the connections between depression and stress and sleep issues in college students. Through their study they deduced that in 2-4-year college students 30% of them reported being so depressed that it was difficult to function at some time in the past year (11). It also states that the causes for depression among young adults may be the result of poverty, stressful life events, maltreatment, and family dysfunction (187). With this information the researchers tested a group of 440 college students with 70% of the subjects reporting insufficient sleep. Through their study they found the depression does not affect the quantity of sleep, but it affected the quality.

The article was last updated in April of 2017 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of depression on sleep. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, several of which have written other credible articles. Since the article focused mostly on the results of their two year study the results may vary from others who recreate it but not by enough to discredit this source and was peer reviewed to add credibility. This article exists to inform of the connection between depression and sleep quality.

Carper, Matthew, Philip Kendall, and Jeremy Peterman. Anxiety Disorders and Comorbid Sleep Problems in School-Aged Youth: Review and Future Research Directions. Child Psychiatry & Human Development. Vol. 46 Issue 3, June 2015, p376-392. 17p. Academic Search Complete, doi: 10.1007/s10578-014-0478-y

The article begins by outlining general issues, such as sleep problems in youths without anxiety, sleep across a youth's development, sleep measurement, and negative functional outcome related to sleep disturbances. Questioning into these topics will provide context to understand the current state of the anxiety and sleep literature, including methodological shortcomings and areas that need further investigation. Second, the article explores associations between anxiety and sleep among youth with anxiety disorders, with an emphasis on studies' collective strengths and limitations.

The article was last updated in June of 2015 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of sleep on an adolescent's development. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with Temple University's Child Psychiatry & Human Development research program, several of which have written other credible articles. The article used their own research and multiple other articles to confirm their findings along with being peer reviewed. This article exists to inform of the connection between sleep and anxious tendencies in adolescents.

Lehto, J. E., and L. Uusitalo?Malmivaara. Sleep-related factors: associations with poor attention and depressive symptoms. Child: Care, Health & Development. Vol. 40 Issue 3, May 2014, p419-425. 7p. Academic Search Complete, doi: 10.1111/cch.12063

This article aims to add to the missing area of research of children's sleep related problems and co-occurring emotional and behavioral disturbances. There is mounting evidence showing that children with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) have sleep problems. There is also evidence suggesting that the symptoms of ADHD are related to sleep factors in children with no diagnosis of true ADHD and this article intends to prove it.

The article was last updated in May of 2014 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of depression on sleep. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with the Special Education Section of the University of Helsinki, both of which have written other credible articles. The article is based off previous articles relating to the subject along with their own research that has been peer reviewed. This article exists to inform of the connection between sleep quantity and behavioral disturbances.

Social Sciences

Gayathri, R., and Abigail Nirandhi Ranasinghe. Awareness of effects of sleep deprivation among college students. Drug Invention Today. Vol. 10 Issue 9, September 2018, p1806-1809. 4p. Academic Search Complete

This article explains the effects of sleep deprivation on college aged students. This article shows that sleep deprivation can be either chronic or acute which changes the effect it has. A chronic sleep-restricted state can cause fatigue, daytime sleepiness, clumsiness, and weight loss or weight gain. It adversely affects the brain and cognitive function. Sleep deprivation tends to cause slower brain waves in the frontal cortex, shortened attention span, higher anxiety, impaired memory, and a grouchy mood.

The article was last updated in September of 2018 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of sleep deprivation on the lives of college students. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with the Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Science, both of which have written other credible articles. The article references other articles relating to the subject and has been peer reviewed. This article exists to inform of the connection between sleep deprivation and the mental state of college students.

Louca, Mia, and Michelle A. Short. Sleep deprivation leads to mood deficits in healthy adolescents. Sleep Medicine. Vol. 16 Issue 8, August 2015, p987-993. 7p. Academic Search Complete, doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2015.03.007

The objectives of the study were to investigate the effects of thirty-six hours of sleep deprivation on the discrete mood states of anger, depression, anxiety, confusion, fatigue, and vigor in healthy adolescents. This study provides empirical support for the notion that sleep loss can causally affect mood states in healthy adolescents, with females having heightened vulnerability.

The article was last updated in August of 2015 and has not been revised. The article focuses on the effects of sleep on adolescent's moods. The source used many statistics that younger students would not understand so the intended audience might be high school or college students. The authors of this article were researchers associated with the Centre for Sleep Research at the University of South Australia, both of which have written other credible articles. The article was mostly their own lab work that was peer reviewed with the help of previous articles on similar subject matter. This article exists to inform of the connection between depression and sleep quality.

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