ERIC Number: EJ1178114
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Jun
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0964-2633
EISSN: N/A
Impact of Sleep on Executive Functioning in School-Age Children with Down Syndrome
Esbensen, A. J.; Hoffman, E. K.
Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, v62 n6 p569-580 Jun 2018
Background: Sleep problems have an impact on executive functioning in the general population. While children with Down syndrome (DS) are at high risk for sleep problems, the impact of these sleep problems on executive functioning in school-age children with DS is less well documented. Our study examined the relationship between parent-reported and actigraphy-measured sleep duration and sleep quality with parent and teacher reports and neuropsychology assessments of executive functioning among school-age children with DS. Method: Thirty school-age children with DS wore an actigraph watch for a week at home at night. Their parent completed ratings of the child's sleep during that same week. Children completed a neuropsychology assessment of their inhibitory control, ability to shift and working memory. Their parents and teachers completed rating scales to assess these same constructs of executive functioning. Results: Parent reports of restless sleep behaviours on the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), but not actigraph-measured sleep period or efficiency, were predictive of parent reports of concerns with inhibitory control, shifting and working memory, and of teacher reports of inhibitory control. No measure of sleep was predictive of executive functioning as measured by the neuropsychology assessment. Conclusion: The study findings corroborate the preliminary literature that parent-reported sleep problems are related to executive functioning in school-age children with DS, particularly in the area of inhibitory control across home and school. These findings have implications for understanding contributing factors to academic performance and school behaviour in school-age children with DS.
Descriptors: Sleep, Executive Function, Down Syndrome, At Risk Students, Correlation, Inhibition, Short Term Memory, Questionnaires, Habit Formation, Neuropsychology, Elementary Secondary Education, Predictor Variables, Children, Adolescents, Rating Scales, Parents, Teachers
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) (NIH)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: R21HD082307