Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 3, 2025

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

10.4K

The association between child maltreatment and sleep disturbances among preschoolers

Zijing Wang1, Wen Li2, Naixue Cui3

  • 1Pediatric Translational Medicine Institute, Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China; Ministry of Education-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Shanghai, China.

Child Abuse & Neglect
|February 15, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Child maltreatment (CM) is linked to sleep problems in young children. Preventing CM is crucial for improving children's sleep and overall health.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Sleep Medicine
  • Child Psychology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Child maltreatment (CM) has lasting negative effects, but its impact on young children's sleep is not well understood.
  • Existing research has not clearly defined the association between various forms of CM and sleep disturbances in early childhood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the relationship between child maltreatment and sleep disturbances in Chinese preschoolers.
  • To investigate the association between CM and short sleep duration among young children in China.

Main Methods:

  • A large-scale study involving 17,023 preschoolers (aged ~6 years) in Shanghai.
  • Parental reports of child maltreatment and the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) were used.
  • Logistic regression analysis was employed to assess the risks associated with CM and sleep issues.

Main Results:

  • Over 73% of children experienced sleep disturbances, and 17.7% had short sleep duration.
  • Physical and emotional abuse were significantly associated with global sleep disturbances.
  • Physical abuse, physical neglect, and emotional abuse were linked to short sleep duration. A cumulative effect of multiple CM types was observed.

Conclusions:

  • Child maltreatment is significantly associated with sleep disturbances and short sleep duration in young children.
  • Interventions aimed at preventing and reducing child maltreatment are essential for promoting healthy sleep patterns and overall well-being in children.
Abstract

Keywords:
Child maltreatmentPreschoolerShort sleep durationSleep disturbances

More Related Videos

Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Connection Between Sleep Disorders and Cognitive Symptoms in Depression04:33

Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Connection Between Sleep Disorders and Cognitive Symptoms in Depression

Published on: April 26, 2024

851
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

12.1K

Related Concept Videos

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,...
235
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...
253
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...
172
Cause and Effect01:53

Cause 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?
11.5K
REM Sleep Behavior Disorder01:15

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD) is a sleep disorder characterized by the absence of muscle paralysis that normally occurs during the REM phase of sleep. This absence allows individuals to physically act out their dreams, which are often vivid and disturbing. Common behaviors exhibited during episodes include kicking, punching, and yelling. These actions can be dangerous, potentially leading to injuries for the person with RBD or their bed partner.
RBD is significantly associated with...
456
Correlations02:20

Correlations

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...
34.4K