Catching As and Zs: poor sleep quality predicts failures to increase studying time.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: We examined the association between sleep quality and academic performance by attending to university students' self-defined goals to increase studying behaviors over a four-week period. METHODS: We evaluated this association in 100 undergraduates, who self-elected to change their studying behaviors and were randomly assigned to one of three interventions (action planning, dissonance-based, or reflection). RESULTS: We found a negative association between the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) at baseline and subsequent studying time over the next four weeks, reflecting a small to medium effect size (partial r = .21). Depressive symptoms did not mediate the predictive influence of sleep quality on studying behavior. Intervention type did not influence the association between sleep quality and studying time. CONCLUSIONS: The predictive significance of sleep quality, in the context of the failure of effects for the randomized interventions, underscores the potential for intervening with sleep as part of efforts to improve academic behaviors.