Relationship of Sleep Hygiene Awareness, Sleep Hygiene Practices, and Sleep Quality in University Students

TLDR

College students often have irregular sleep schedules and engage in habits such as alcohol and caffeine use that are linked to poor sleep hygiene, and while clinical studies show that improving sleep hygiene can treat insomnia, evidence in nonclinical student populations has been inconsistent. The study aimed to examine the relationships among sleep hygiene knowledge, practices, and sleep quality in university students using validated measures. Researchers administered reliable sleep hygiene questionnaires and performed regression analyses to assess how knowledge, practices, and other factors predict sleep quality. Results showed that greater sleep hygiene knowledge predicts better sleep practices, which in turn predict higher sleep quality, while irregular schedules, thirst at bedtime, noise, and pre‑sleep worry were associated with poorer sleep quality.

Abstract

College students are known for their variable sleep schedules. Such schedules, along with other common student practices (e.g., alcohol and caffeine consumption), are associated with poor sleep hygiene. Researchers have demonstrated in clinical populations that improving sleep hygiene knowledge and practices is an effective treatment for insomnia. However, researchers who have examined relationships between sleep hygiene and practices in nonclinical samples and overall sleep quality have produced inconsistent findings, perhaps because of questionable measures. In this study, the authors used psychometrically sound instruments to examine these variables and to counter the shortcomings in previous investigations. Their findings suggest that knowledge of sleep hygiene is related to sleep practices, which, in turn, is related to overall sleep quality. The data from their regression modeling indicated that variable sleep schedules, going to bed thirsty, environmental noise, and worrying while falling asleep contribute to poor sleep quality.