Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 10, 2026
10:16
Human Circadian Phenotyping and Diurnal Performance Testing in the Real World
Published on: April 7, 2020
Couples' nighttime sleep efficiency and concordance: evidence for bidirectional associations with daytime
Brant P Hasler1, Wendy M Troxel
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. haslerbp@upmc.edu
Psychosomatic Medicine
|July 30, 2010
Summary
Daily relationship quality impacts sleep, and good sleep improves relationship interactions for both partners. Couples
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Sleep Medicine
- Sociology
Background:
- Emerging evidence suggests bidirectional links between sleep and relational processes in couples.
- Previous research on sleep and relationship functioning has been primarily cross-sectional.
- Prospective studies are needed to establish the directionality of these associations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To prospectively examine the directionality of the association between daily relationship functioning and nightly sleep quality.
- To investigate the association between couples' relationship functioning and concordance in sleep-wake rhythms.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study involving 29 heterosexual cosleeping couples over 7 days.
- Sleep was measured using daily diaries and wrist actigraphy.
- Daily relationship functioning was assessed using ecological momentary assessment methods.
- Dyadic, multilevel analyses were employed to examine predictive relationships.
Main Results:
- For men, higher sleep efficiency predicted less negative partner interaction the following day.
- For women, less negative partner interaction predicted greater sleep efficiency that night.
- Positive and negative daytime partner interactions influenced male partners' sleep efficiency.
- Lower sleep onset concordance in women predicted less positive and more negative partner interactions.
Conclusions:
- Bidirectional associations exist between sleep parameters and interpersonal interactions in couples.
- These findings suggest a novel pathway linking close relationships with physical and mental health.
Related Concept Videos
02:20Correlations
Correlation means that there is a relationship between two or more variables (such as ice cream consumption and crime), but this relationship does not necessarily imply cause and effect. When two variables are correlated, it simply means that as one variable changes, so does the other. We can measure correlation by calculating a statistic known as a correlation coefficient. A correlation coefficient is a number from -1 to +1 that indicates the strength and direction of the relationship between...
01:24Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
Substance use disorders involve a pattern of using drugs more extensively than intended and continuing use despite harmful consequences. This includes legal substances like alcohol and nicotine, as well as illegal drugs. These disorders often involve both physical and psychological dependence, reflecting compulsive use of substances that significantly alter thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, contributing to a major public health issue.
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
02:12Relationship Formation
What do you think is the single most influential factor in determining with whom you become friends and whom you form romantic relationships? You might be surprised to learn that the answer is simple: the people with whom you have the most contact. This most important factor is proximity. You are more likely to be friends with people you have regular contact with. For example, there are decades of research that shows that you are more likely to become friends with people who live in your dorm,...
01:53Cause and Effect
While variables are sometimes correlated because one does cause the other, it could also be that some other factor, a confounding variable, is actually causing the systematic movement in our variables of interest. For instance, as sales in ice cream increase, so does the overall rate of crime. Is it possible that indulging in your favorite flavor of ice cream could send you on a crime spree? Or, after committing crime do you think you might decide to treat yourself to a cone?
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
01:11Understanding Sleep
Sleep, an essential biological state, involves significant reductions in physical activity, sensory awareness, and interaction with the environment. This complex physiological process is primarily regulated by specific brain regions, notably the hypothalamus and pons, which govern the sleep-wake cycle or circadian rhythm.
The circadian rhythm, a nearly 24-hour cycle, is deeply influenced by environmental light cues. Light exposure directly affects the hypothalamus, which in turn regulates...
The circadian rhythm, a nearly 24-hour cycle, is deeply influenced by environmental light cues. Light exposure directly affects the hypothalamus, which in turn regulates...