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The role of prior sleep for divergent thinking in infants

Sabine Seehagen1,2, Samuel Charlton1, Nicola Starkey1

  • 1University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand.

Journal of Sleep Research
|August 2, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Infant divergent thinking is not affected by short wake periods. However, cognitive function in infants is linked to the quality and quantity of preceding night-time sleep, not daytime naps.

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Development
  • Sleep Science

Background:

  • Higher-order cognitive functions are sensitive to sleep disruptions in children and adults.
  • The impact of prior sleep on infant cognitive abilities, specifically divergent thinking, remains understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between prior sleep and divergent thinking in 13-16-month-old infants.
  • To determine if the duration of wakefulness or the quality/quantity of preceding sleep influences infant divergent thinking.

Main Methods:

  • A behavioral assessment of divergent thinking was conducted on 43 infants.
  • Wakefulness duration was experimentally manipulated.
  • Sleep quantity and quality were assessed using actigraphy and parent diaries over multiple nights.

Main Results:

  • Divergent thinking was not impaired by a prior wakefulness period of 4 hours.
  • Infant divergent thinking showed a consistent positive correlation with both the quality and quantity of preceding night-time sleep.

Conclusions:

  • The quality and quantity of night-time sleep are more critical for developing divergent thinking in infants than the timing of daytime naps.
  • These findings highlight the importance of consistent, quality night-time sleep for early cognitive development.

Keywords:
cognitioncreative thinkinginfancynapsnight-time sleep

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