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Updated: Jun 29, 2026
08:36
Collecting Sleep, Circadian, Fatigue, and Performance Data in Complex Operational Environments
Published on: August 8, 2019
Sleep, circadian rhythms, and delayed phase in adolescence
Stephanie J Crowley1, Christine Acebo, Mary A Carskadon
1Department of Psychology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02906, USA. Stephanie_Crowley@Brown.edu
Sleep Medicine
|March 27, 2007
Summary
Adolescent sleep patterns shift later due to biological and environmental factors. This review explores these changes, including delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS), and their underlying mechanisms.
Area of Science:
- Chronobiology
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Sleep Medicine
Background:
- Sleep/wake timing naturally shifts later in adolescents.
- Adolescence involves significant environmental, psychosocial, and biological changes impacting sleep.
- Understanding these shifts is crucial for adolescent health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review sleep/wake patterns in adolescents.
- To examine factors influencing these changes.
- To discuss the two-process model and delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS).
Main Methods:
- Literature review of sleep/wake patterns during adolescence.
- Analysis of environmental, psychosocial, and biological factors.
- Outline of the two-process model (Process C and Process S).
Main Results:
- Adolescence is characterized by a later shift in sleep/wake timing.
- Environmental, psychosocial, and biological factors contribute to this shift.
- The two-process model helps explain these developmental changes.
Conclusions:
- Developmental changes in circadian (Process C) and homeostatic (Process S) sleep drives underlie adolescent sleep shifts.
- Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) may represent an extreme manifestation of these adolescent changes.
- Further understanding of DSPS etiology and treatment in adolescents is warranted.
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