Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 4, 2026

Chronic Sleep Deprivation in Mouse Pups by Means of Gentle Handling
03:46

Chronic Sleep Deprivation in Mouse Pups by Means of Gentle Handling

Published on: October 11, 2018

An hour less sleep is a risk factor for childhood conduct problems

S Holley1, C M Hill, J Stevenson

  • 1Division of Clinical Neurosciences, School of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Highfield, Southampton, UK. cmh2@soton.ac.uk

Child: Care, Health and Development
|February 1, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Children with less sleep may face conduct problems. Actigraphy revealed that reduced sleep time significantly predicts behavioral issues in school-aged children, suggesting routine sleep screening.

Area of Science:

  • Child psychology
  • Sleep science
  • Behavioral science

Background:

  • Childhood sleep problems can have long-term effects.
  • Sleep difficulties in children are linked to behavioral issues, but objective measures yield inconsistent findings.
  • Specific sleep quality aspects associated with daytime behavior problems require clarification.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine which behavioral symptoms in school-aged children (6-11 years) are best predicted by actigraphic sleep measures.
  • To investigate the relationship between objective sleep parameters and behavioral difficulties in a general population sample.

Main Methods:

  • Actigraphy was used to objectively measure sleep in 91 typically developing children aged 6-11 years over 6 days.
  • Parental completion of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) assessed behavioral symptoms.
  • Multivariate linear regression models analyzed the impact of sleep on SDQ subscales, controlling for age and gender.

Main Results:

  • Sleep measures did not predict emotional symptoms or hyperactivity.
  • Actigraphy-identified sleep duration accounted for 18% of the variance in conduct problems.
  • Actual sleep time (in minutes) was the only significant predictor of conduct problems.

Conclusions:

  • A reduction of 1 hour in sleep duration may increase a child's risk for conduct problems.
  • Clinicians should consider screening for sleep difficulties when evaluating children with conduct problems.
Abstract

More Related Videos

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood08:20

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood

Published on: October 2, 2019

Collecting Sleep, Circadian, Fatigue, and Performance Data in Complex Operational Environments08:36

Collecting Sleep, Circadian, Fatigue, and Performance Data in Complex Operational Environments

Published on: August 8, 2019

Related Concept Videos

Insufficient Sleep and Sleep Deprivation01:13

Insufficient Sleep and Sleep Deprivation

Insufficient sleep refers to not getting the recommended amount of sleep for optimal functioning, even if it's just slightly less than needed. Sleep insufficiency may occur due to lifestyle choices, such as staying up late for social events or work, resulting in routinely getting less sleep than required. For example, consistently sleeping 6 hours when the body needs 7-9 hours can lead to cumulative effects on health and well-being.
Sleep deprivation is a more severe form of sleep loss...
Conduct Disorder01:28

Conduct Disorder

Conduct disorder is a complex mental health diagnosis characterized by a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior that violates societal norms, the rights of others, or age-appropriate rules. The diagnostic criteria for conduct disorder require the presence of at least three problematic behaviors within the past 12 months, with at least one occurring in the past six months. These behaviors are grouped into four categories: aggression toward people and animals; destruction of property;...
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder01:30

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. It affects approximately 5-8% of children globally, with around 60-70% of cases persisting into adulthood. ADHD has significant implications for educational attainment, social interactions, and occupational success.
Diagnostic Criteria and Symptoms
To diagnose ADHD, symptoms must manifest before age 12 and be evident across multiple settings.
Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep01:24

Substance 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,...
Nightmares and Night Terrors01:18

Nightmares and Night Terrors

Nightmares and night terrors represent two distinct types of sleep disturbances that differ in timing, characteristics, and the sleeper's recall of the event. Nightmares are vivid, disturbing dreams that usually awaken the sleeper from REM sleep, a stage of sleep where brain activity is high, and dreams are most frequent. Upon awakening, individuals often have detailed recollections of their nightmares, which can include themes of threats to survival, security, or self-esteem.
Nightmares often...
Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation02:19

Circadian 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,...