Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Influence Of Sleep Quantity On Externalizing Behaviors In Adolescents: The Mediating Effect Of Inhibition, Emily Feldman

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to sleep disruptions due both to hormonal changes (causing a shift in circadian rhythms, Pieters et al., 2015) and to school and extra-curricular commitments leading to sleep restriction (Carskadon, 2011). Sleep quantity, in turn, has been independently linked to low response inhibition as well as externalizing behaviors (Lowe et al., 2017; Gregory & Sadeh, 2012). This study aims to build upon these findings by testing the hypothesis that decreased inhibition will mediate the relationship between low quantity of sleep and externalizing behaviors. A representative sample of adolescents in Chicago, Illinois was recruited to participate in a …