All you need is sleep: Can basic psychological need satisfaction improve athletes' sleep quality?

Even though athletes need sufficient restorative sleep to cope with the demands of competitive sport, they frequently experience poor sleep quality (Walsh et al., 2021). Behavioral strategies are often employed to enhance their sleep quality (Cunha et al., 2023). Basic psychological need theory (BPNT) posits that the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Ryan & Deci, 2000) may improve sleep quality (Campbell et al., 2015). This study aims to investigate this relationship in a cohort of competitive athletes. At baseline, 66 competitive athletes (M = 21.06 years, SD = 5.05; 74.2% female) answered questionnaires on general sleep quality and need satisfaction in sleep and sport domains. A total of 48 athletes (M = 20.00 years, SD = 4.44; 66.7% female) took part in a 14-night sleep tracking study. Actigraphs were used to measure objective sleep parameters (sleep onset latency, sleep duration, and sleep efficiency). Individual sleep deficit and subjective sleep quality were recorded via morning sleep logs. In evening logs, athletes also reported their daily general need satisfaction. Results showed that higher global need satisfaction (general and sleep-specific) led to higher subjective sleep quality, as well as to lower individual sleep deficit. Multilevel analyses revealed that higher general competence led to longer subjective sleep duration and shorter sleep onset latency, while autonomy and relatedness led to lower sleep need. Our results indicate that general and sleep-specific basic psychological need satisfaction is positively connected to athletes' perceived sleep quality. This study helps to unravel sleep dynamics and to highlight potential interventions for optimizing sleep in athletes.