Jacqueline Gill

The Effect of Sleep on Emotional Regulation in Adolescents

Abstract

Adolescence is the period between childhood and adulthood where physical, cognitive, and psychological growth occurs (World Health Organization, 2023). Insufficient duration of sleep has numerous short-term and long-term harmful effects on adolescents’ cortical brain regions. The positive relationship between emotional regulation and sleep in adults has been well established, however, this relationship cannot be translated to adolescents due to cognitive development differences. The prefrontal cortex does not fully develop until one’s mid-twenties; thus a major difference in the emotional regulation process for adolescents and adults exists (Giedd, 2004). This study investigates the effect of sleep on emotional regulation in adolescents to explore this relationship in an age group with less developed prefrontal cortex. 141 adolescents, ages 13-19, completed a one-week protocol where they monitored their sleep duration and quality every night for a week. Participants’ sleep was monitored at home via self-report. Participants completed the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children (PANAS-C) and Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) questionnaire for 32 Nencki Affective Picture System (NAPS) images to assess emotional regulation. Sleep duration and participants’ emotional regulation responses were analyzed utilizing Pearson correlations, t-tests, and general linear models. The results of the study indicate that there is a lack of relationship between sleep duration in adolescents and their emotional regulation. Findings illustrate the potential for future research to explore other potential factors of adolescent emotional regulation including circadian rhythms, adolescents' lack of ability to identify emotions they are feeling, or to investigate shortened sleep versus lengthened sleep in the same adolescent.