Single-parent Family Structure and Sleep Problems in Black and White Adolescents

Overview

Journal Sleep Med

Specialties Neurology
Psychiatry

Date 2014 Jan 16

PMID 24424100

Citations 40

Authors

Wendy M Troxel

Laisze Lee

Martica Hall

Karen A Matthews

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objectives: Sleep is critical for adolescent health and is influenced by the family environment. In our study, we examined if family structure defined as single- vs. two-parent households affected adolescent sleep.

Methods: Participants were 242 (57% black; 47% boys) healthy adolescents (mean age, 15.7 years). Sleep was measured using self-report and wrist actigraphy over seven consecutive nights. Outcomes were actigraphy-assessed sleep duration and sleep efficiency (SE) for the full week and weekends and weekdays separately, as well as self-reported sleep-wake problems and variability in bedtimes. Linear regression examined the relationship between family structure and sleep, after adjusting for age, sex, race, body mass index, and depressive symptoms, parental education, family conflict, and financial strain. Race and sex were examined as potential moderators.

Results: After adjusting for covariates, adolescents from single-parent households had poorer SE across the week and shorter sleep duration on weekends. White adolescents from two-parent households had fewer sleep-wake problems and lower bedtime variability, whereas black adolescents from single-parent households had the lowest weekend SE. There were no significant differences in family structure-sex interactions.

Conclusion: Our findings are the first to demonstrate that single-parent family structure is an independent correlate of sleep problems in adolescents and they highlight the moderating role of race.

Citing Articles

Cross-Sectional Study on Analysis of the Prevalence and Influencing Factors of Sleep Disorders among College Students in a Certain University in China.

Hu L, Wang K, Fu G, Wei H, Wu Y Actas Esp Psiquiatr. 2024; 52(6):835-842.

PMID: 39665611 PMC: 11636538. DOI: 10.62641/aep.v52i6.1656.

Association of Exposure to Interpersonal Racism and Racial Disparities in Inadequate Sleep Risk.

Davenport M, Berkley S, Phillips S, Hardy R, Teferra A, Barnett K J Pediatr. 2024; 276:114378.

PMID: 39447725 PMC: 11645191. DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2024.114378.

Influence of chronotype on pain incidence during early adolescence.

Li R, Groenewald C, Tham S, Rabbitts J, Ward T, Palermo T Pain. 2024; 165(11):2595-2605.

PMID: 38809249 PMC: 11817718. DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003271.

Family structure and the association with physical activity-Findings from 40 countries participating in the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study.

Haug E, Smith O, Ng K, Samdal O, Marques A, Borraccino A PLoS One. 2024; 19(4):e0300188.

PMID: 38630701 PMC: 11023480. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300188.

Prevalence and correlates of sleep disturbance among adolescents in the eastern seaboard of China.

Yang H, Luan L, Xu J, Xu X, Tang X, Zhang X BMC Public Health. 2024; 24(1):1003.

PMID: 38600538 PMC: 11008010. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18564-0.

References

Gregory A, Caspi A, Moffitt T, Poulton R . Family conflict in childhood: a predictor of later insomnia. Sleep. 2006; 29(8):1063-7. DOI: 10.1093/sleep/29.8.1063. View

Gupta N, Mueller W, Chan W, Meininger J . Is obesity associated with poor sleep quality in adolescents?. Am J Hum Biol. 2002; 14(6):762-8. DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.10093. View

Mitchell J, Rodriguez D, Schmitz K, Audrain-McGovern J . Sleep duration and adolescent obesity. Pediatrics. 2013; 131(5):e1428-34. PMC: 3639456. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2012-2368. View

Bianchi S, Subaiya L, Kahn J . The gender gap in the economic well-being of nonresident fathers and custodial mothers. Demography. 1999; 36(2):195-203. View

Fredriksen K, Rhodes J, Reddy R, Way N . Sleepless in Chicago: tracking the effects of adolescent sleep loss during the middle school years. Child Dev. 2004; 75(1):84-95. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00655.x. View

Ancoli-Israel S, Cole R, Alessi C, Chambers M, Moorcroft W, Pollak C . The role of actigraphy in the study of sleep and circadian rhythms. Sleep. 2003; 26(3):342-92. DOI: 10.1093/sleep/26.3.342. View

Pasch K, Laska M, Lytle L, Moe S . Adolescent sleep, risk behaviors, and depressive symptoms: are they linked?. Am J Health Behav. 2009; 34(2):237-48. PMC: 3086400. DOI: 10.5993/ajhb.34.2.11. View

Gromov I, Gromov D . Sleep and substance use and abuse in adolescents. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2009; 18(4):929-46. DOI: 10.1016/j.chc.2009.04.004. View

Acebo C, Sadeh A, Seifer R, Tzischinsky O, Wolfson A, Hafer A . Estimating sleep patterns with activity monitoring in children and adolescents: how many nights are necessary for reliable measures?. Sleep. 1999; 22(1):95-103. DOI: 10.1093/sleep/22.1.95. View

10.

Troxel W, Matthews K . What are the costs of marital conflict and dissolution to children's physical health?. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev. 2004; 7(1):29-57. DOI: 10.1023/b:ccfp.0000020191.73542.b0. View

11.

Meltzer L, Mindell J . Relationship between child sleep disturbances and maternal sleep, mood, and parenting stress: a pilot study. J Fam Psychol. 2007; 21(1):67-73. DOI: 10.1037/0893-3200.21.1.67. View

12.

OBrien E, Mindell J . Sleep and risk-taking behavior in adolescents. Behav Sleep Med. 2005; 3(3):113-33. DOI: 10.1207/s15402010bsm0303_1. View

13.

Kelly R, El-Sheikh M . Marital conflict and children's sleep: reciprocal relations and socioeconomic effects. J Fam Psychol. 2011; 25(3):412-22. DOI: 10.1037/a0023789. View

14.

Roberts R, Lewinsohn P, Seeley J . Symptoms of DSM-III-R major depression in adolescence: evidence from an epidemiological survey. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1995; 34(12):1608-17. DOI: 10.1097/00004583-199512000-00011. View

15.

BOe T, Hysing M, Stormark K, Lundervold A, Sivertsen B . Sleep problems as a mediator of the association between parental education levels, perceived family economy and poor mental health in children. J Psychosom Res. 2012; 73(6):430-6. DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2012.09.008. View

16.

Hale L, Do D . Racial differences in self-reports of sleep duration in a population-based study. Sleep. 2007; 30(9):1096-103. PMC: 1978399. DOI: 10.1093/sleep/30.9.1096. View

17.

Ivanenko A, Crabtree V, Gozal D . Sleep and depression in children and adolescents. Sleep Med Rev. 2005; 9(2):115-29. DOI: 10.1016/j.smrv.2004.09.006. View

18.

Javaheri S, Storfer-Isser A, Rosen C, Redline S . Association of short and long sleep durations with insulin sensitivity in adolescents. J Pediatr. 2010; 158(4):617-23. PMC: 3076647. DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2010.09.080. View

19.

Aro H, Palosaari U . Parental divorce, adolescence, and transition to young adulthood: a follow-up study. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 1992; 62(3):421-9. DOI: 10.1037/h0079342. View

20.

Ogden C, Flegal K, Carroll M, Johnson C . Prevalence and trends in overweight among US children and adolescents, 1999-2000. JAMA. 2002; 288(14):1728-32. DOI: 10.1001/jama.288.14.1728. View