Advancing a Biopsychosocial and Contextual Model of Sleep in Adolescence: A Review and Introduction to the Special Issue

Abstract

Sleep problems in adolescence have been identified as an international public health issue. Over the past few decades, notable advances have been made in our understanding of the patterns and consequences of sleep in adolescence. Despite these important gains, there is much about the role of sleep in adolescence that remains to be understood. This Special Issue brings together studies that examine sleep as it specifically pertains to adolescent development and adjustment. In this introductory article, we argue for the importance of grounding the study of sleep and adolescence in developmental science and a developmental psychopathology framework. First, a review of the literature is used to outline a biopsychosocial and contextual model of sleep in adolescence. Second, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is used as an exemplar of the proposed model given the pervasiveness of sleep problems among youth with ADHD and the likelihood that sleep problems and ADHD symptoms are interconnected in complex ways. Finally, a brief introduction to the empirical articles included in the Special Issue is provided, with particular attention given to how these articles fit within the proposed biopsychosocial and contextual model. Along with the framework proposed in this article, the studies included in this Special Issue advance the current literature and point to critical directions for future research.

Implications of Psychological Morbidity on Physical Health and Behavior of Adolescents in Aligarh, India

“…Becker et al and Shanahan et al have also reported an association between psychological morbidity and insufficient sleep (32,33). Other studies have also found an association between short sleep duration and internalizing as well as externalizing behavioral problems (34,35).…”

Difficult to Bed and Difficult to Rise: Complex Interplay Among ADHD, Sleep, and Adolescence

“…Reviews of the literature clearly document that sleep problems negatively impact academic functioning (Becker, Langberg, & Byars, 2015;Shochat, Cohen-Zion, & Tzischinsky, 2014). The impact of sleep problems and poorer academic functioning has been documented using both naturalistic and experimental studies (Astill, Van der Heijden, Van IJzendoorn, & Van Someren, 2012), though such studies have not been conducted in teens with ADHD specifically.…”

“…This is surprising since the combination of sleep and adolescence has been described as "the perfect storm" (Carskadon, 2011). A developmental psychopathology framework is needed to advance our understanding of the complex interplay among ADHD, sleep, and adolescence (Becker, Langberg, & Byars, 2015). Risk factors for sleep problems and the consequences of comorbid sleep problems and ADHD likely differ markedly between early childhood and adolescence, given decreases in parental involvement and influence and increases in demands associated with academic and extracurricular responsibilities.…”

A cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based group sleep intervention improves behavior problems in at-risk adolescents by improving perceived sleep quality

“…Indeed, recent reviews have concluded that sleep problems, particularly wakefulness in bed (e.g., prolonged sleep onset latency [SOL] and poor sleep efficiency [SE]), precede the development of anxiety and depression in adolescence more than the reverse (Lovato & Gradisar, 2014;McMakin & Alfano, 2015). However, in comparison to internalizing symptoms, relatively few studies have examined the role of sleep disturbance in adolescent behavior problems (Becker, Langberg, & Byars, 2015).…”

“…However, further high quality longitudinal and treatment outcome studies are needed that examine the prospective and causal associations between poor sleep and behavior problems in adolescents (Becker et al, 2015;Dewald, Meijer, Oort, Kerkhof, & Bögels, 2010;Shochat et al, 2014).…”