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Published on: October 2, 2019
The association between sleep and empathy in young preschoolers: A population study
Tingyu Rong1,2,3, Xiaoning Sun1,2,3,4, Zichen Zhang1,2,3
1Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Insights
Adequate night sleep and fewer sleep disturbances are linked to better empathy in preschoolers. These sleep-empathy connections are stronger in children with higher empathy and differ between boys and girls.
Area of Science:
- Child development
- Developmental psychology
- Sleep science
Background:
- Sleep is crucial for socio-emotional development in early childhood.
- Empathy, encompassing affective and cognitive components, is a key aspect of socio-emotional competence.
- Understanding the interplay between sleep and empathy in preschoolers is vital for promoting healthy development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the associations between various aspects of sleep and both affective and cognitive empathy in young preschoolers.
- To explore potential sex differences in the relationship between sleep and empathy.
- To examine how these associations vary across different levels of empathy.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from 23,259 preschoolers (aged 4.3 ± 0.3 years) from the Shanghai Children's Health, Education and Lifestyle Evaluation-Preschool (SCHEDULE-P) study.
- Employed caregiver-reported measures: Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire and Griffith Empathy Measure.
- Applied ordinary least-square and quantile regression analyses to assess sleep-empathy associations, including sex-specific analyses.
Main Results:
- Longer night sleep duration was linked to higher cognitive empathy but lower affective empathy.
- Longer nap duration correlated with higher affective empathy.
- Sleep disturbances showed a positive association with affective empathy and a negative association with cognitive empathy.
- Associations were more pronounced in children with higher empathy levels and varied by sex, with affective empathy links stronger in girls and cognitive empathy links more common in boys.
Conclusions:
- Longer night sleep and fewer sleep disturbances are associated with more mature empathy patterns in preschoolers.
- The relationship between sleep and empathy is complex, influenced by empathy levels and sex.
- Promoting healthy sleep habits in young children is essential for fostering optimal socio-emotional development, particularly empathy.
Abstract:
Sleep is vital for children's early socio-emotional development, particularly empathy. This study aimed to explore the associations between sleep and empathy in young preschoolers. A sample of 23,259 preschoolers (4.3 ± 0.3 years) at the entry year of preschool was recruited as part of the Shanghai Children's Health, Education and Lifestyle Evaluation-Preschool (SCHEDULE-P) study. Caregivers reported on child sleep, affective empathy, and cognitive empathy through the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire and the Griffith Empathy Measure. Ordinary least-square regression and quantile regression were performed for the associations between sleep and empathy. Sex differences were also investigated. Night sleep duration was negatively associated with affective empathy (β = -0.35, p < 0.001), and positively associated with cognitive empathy (β = 0.41, p < 0.001). Longer nap duration was associated with higher affective empathy (β = 0.28, p < 0.001). Sleep disturbances were positively associated with affective empathy (β = 0.04, p < 0.001) and negatively associated with cognitive empathy (β = -0.09, p < 0.001). These associations were generally stronger in children at higher empathy quantiles and also those at the 10th cognitive empathy quantile. The associations between sleep and affective empathy were mainly contributed by girls, and were more common in boys in terms of cognitive empathy, particularly at the 10th and the 30th quantiles. In conclusion, longer night sleep duration and fewer sleep disturbances are associated with a more mature empathy pattern in young preschoolers. The associations are more prominent in children at the higher end of the empathy spectrum, and vary by sex. These findings highlight the importance to promote sleep health in young children for optimal socio-emotional development.
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