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05:05
Establishing a Device for Sleep Deprivation in Mice
Published on: September 22, 2023
The trait of Introversion-Extraversion predicts vulnerability to sleep deprivation
William D S Killgore1, Jessica M Richards, Desiree B Killgore
1Department of Behavioral Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA. Killgore@mclean.harvard.edu
Journal of Sleep Research
|November 27, 2007
Summary
Higher Extraversion scores correlate with greater declines in attention and slower responses during sleep deprivation, supporting Eysenck
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Sleep Research
Background:
- Eysenck's theory posits introverts have higher cortical arousal than extraverts.
- Extraverts are theorized to be chronically under-aroused and prone to boredom.
- Individual differences in personality may influence vulnerability to sleep deprivation effects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between Introversion-Extraversion (I-E) and psychomotor vigilance performance.
- To assess how prolonged wakefulness impacts vigilance in individuals with varying Extraversion levels.
- To test the hypothesis that higher Extraversion scores predict greater performance declines during sleep deprivation.
Main Methods:
- 23 healthy military personnel underwent 77 hours of continuous sleep deprivation.
- Psychomotor vigilance testing was administered repeatedly overnight.
- Personality traits were assessed using the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R); caffeine was administered to a subset.
Main Results:
- Higher Extraversion scores were significantly associated with increased attentional lapses and slower response times.
- These effects were most pronounced during the initial overnight testing session.
- Gregariousness and Activity level sub-factors of Extraversion were key predictors of performance decline post-sleep loss.
Conclusions:
- Findings support Eysenck's cortico-reticular activation theory of I-E.
- Individual differences in Extraversion may confer differential vulnerability or resistance to sleep deprivation's cognitive impacts.
- Extraversion traits influence attention and vigilance decrements following extended wakefulness.
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