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Scientific study: Sleep makes children smarter
A research project has been launched to study for the first time whether
children perform better at school when they sleep longer and more soundly.
Children in primary school will participate in a special training to improve
their sleep behaviour. Experts will then examine how this affects the
children's performance at school. This study - which is supported by the
Austrian Science Fund (FWF) - will not only provide valuable scientific
insight into sleeping behaviour, but will also evaluate sleep improvement
techniques that can be taught to all children with the aim of improving
their performance at school.
We know that sleep is essential for survival, but we do not yet know
for sure which particular functions sleep performs in living things. It
has been proven, however, that sleep deprivation and sleep disorders can
lead to various psychological and physical problems, whereas improving
sleep quality has a positive effect on people.
In a current study, Dr. Kerstin Hoedlmoser and Dr. Manuel Schabus from
the Department of Psychology at the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg
are investigating whether sleeping longer and more soundly improves the
memory capacity of schoolchildren and helps boosting their performance.
The research project focuses on 60 children aged between eight and eleven.
It aims not only to examine their sleep behaviour but also to improve
it with special training methods.
Learning how to sleep
The study seeks to have a positive impact on the duration and quality
of the children's sleep by teaching them different methods. To this end,
the participants are divided randomly into two groups. Dr. Hoedlmoser
explains: "One group of the children receives a standard sleep education
program. In this group, playful interventions are used to teach the children
sleep hygiene rules and relaxation techniques to improve their sleep quality.
The other group takes part in a neurofeedback training where the children
voluntarily learn to control their neuronal activity." During the
neurofeedback training, brain-signals are measured using sensors and evaluated
simultaneously by a computer program. The computer promptly provides positive
feedback when the brain's activity is in the ideal frequency range for
rest and relaxation. Based on this positive feedback, the participants
learn to control the activities of their brain on demand. This strategy
is designed to help the children to relax during the onset of sleep and
to fall asleep more easily. Both methods should enhance the duration and
quality of their sleep.
Every child will complete various tests at the beginning and end of the
study to evaluate memory, concentration and performance at school. This
will provide the researchers with an insight into the relationship between
sleep and cognitive performance. Dr. Hoedlmoser obtained clear results
with a similar study conducted with adult participants: "We showed
that neurofeedback training improves the sleep behaviour of adults. Subjects
were able to fall asleep faster and were also far more successful in recalling
word pairs." The presented study is now seeking to determine whether
similar results can be achieved within schoolchildren.
Sleep problems among children
The current research project offers an interesting approach because not
only adults suffer from sleep problems. As Dr. Hoedlmoser has proven in
another study involving 330 children from primary schools, sleep problems
are already widespread among eight to eleven-year-olds: "Many children
show a sleep onset delay or report difficulties waking up in the morning.
Others refuse going to bed, or their restless legs prevent them from finding
restorative sleep. Furthermore, children who watch television or play
computer games before going to bed are complaining more often about nightmares."
Because of the high relevance of sleep problems among young children,
this FWF-supported project focuses on this particular age group. The study
is interested in gaining a scientific insight into sleep behaviours among
children and additionally investigating preventive techniques for sleep
problems. It is for these reasons that the findings of the study will
be published and made available to the general public once it has been
concluded.
Scientific contact
Dr. Kerstin Hoedlmoser
Paris Lodron University
Department of Psychology
Hellbrunnerstrasse 34,
5020 Salzburg
Austria
T +43 / 662 / 8044 - 5143
M +43 / 650 / 59 83 523
E kerstin.hoedlmoser@sbg.ac.at
Austrian Science Fund (FWF)
Mag. Stefan Bernhardt
Editor/publisher
PR&D - Public Relations für Forschung & Bildung
Campus Vienna Biocenter 2
1030 Vienna
Austria
T +43 / 1 / 505 70 44
E contact@prd.at
W http://www.prd.at
Vienna, 22 February 2010
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