Conference Coverage

Poor Sleep, Like Binge Drinking and Marijuana Use, May Predict Academic Problems


 

MINNEAPOLIS—College students who sleep poorly are much more likely to earn worse grades and withdraw from a course than are peers who are healthy sleepers, according to a study presented at the 28th Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

Problems with sleep timing and sleep maintenance in college students are a strong predictor of academic problems, even after controlling for other factors that contribute to academic success, such as clinical depression, feeling isolated, and diagnosis with a learning disability or chronic health problem, according to the researchers. The study also suggested that sleep problems have approximately the same effect on grade point average (GPA) as binge drinking and marijuana use do.

Roxanne Prichard, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology, and Monica Hartmann, Professor of Economics, both of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, analyzed data from the Spring 2009 American College Health Association National College Health Assessment to evaluate factors that predict undergraduate academic problems, including dropping a course, earning a lower course grade, and having a lower cumulative GPA. The researchers included responses from more than 43,000 participants in the analysis.

The negative effect of sleep problems on academic success was more pronounced for freshmen. Among first-year students, poor sleep—but not binge drinking, marijuana use, or a diagnosis of learning disabilities—independently predicted dropping or withdrawing from a course. Results were adjusted for potentially confounding factors such as race, gender, work hours, chronic illness, and psychiatric problems such as anxiety. “Well-rested students perform better academically and are healthier physically and psychologically,” said the investigators.

Student health information about the importance of sleep is lacking on most university campuses, according to Dr. Prichard. “Sleep problems are not systematically addressed in the same way that substance abuse problems are,” she said. “For colleges and universities, addressing sleep problems early in a student’s academic career can have a major economic benefit through increased retention.

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