Teenage Sleeping Problems Fueled by Dysfunctional Parents

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by StudyFinds.

When teenagers stumble out of bed looking exhausted, many parents point fingers at late-night phone scrolling or video games. But a study following over 3,400 children for four years reveals something different: family conflict and parents’ mental health struggles show connections to teen sleep problems that extend beyond screen use alone.

In the study, researchers from the University of Melbourne analyzed data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, tracking children from elementary school (ages 9-11) through middle school (ages 13-14). They measured family relationships in the earlier years and sleep patterns in the later ones.

Scientists found associations between parents experiencing psychological difficulties and teenagers who went to bed later, woke up later, and had poorer sleep quality overall. Family arguments and tension showed similar patterns, while appropriate parental monitoring was linked to better sleep quality.

The associations were consistent across measures, though the effect sizes were small. Parents dealing with mental health symptoms were linked to teens who went to bed and woke up later. These same teens also showed poorer overall sleep quality according to parent reports.

Households with frequent conflict showed similar patterns. These associations remained even after researchers accounted for age, socioeconomic status, pubertal development, and sex.

The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

Source: StudyFinds
https://studyfinds.org/parents-who-regularly-fight-fuel-sleeping-problems-among-teens/