Improving Sleep Among Teachers: an Implementation-Intention Intervention

Sleep quality in Spanish university professors: Association with lifestyle habits and physical and mental health indicators

BACKGROUND

There is currently a growing interest in knowing the state of health of university professors. Sleep habits are essential for health and performance in any profession, including university teaching, and are related to different aspects of a teacher's work productivity and general wellbeing.

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed to analyse sleep quality in Spanish university professors and to determine its association with lifestyle habits and physical and mental health indicators.

METHOD

The study was carried out on a sample of 1560 university professors (47.39 ± 11.29 years) from thirteen universities belonging to the Spanish Network of Health Promoting Universities. Sleep quality, emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation, self-fulfilment, quality of life, stress, anxiety, depression, vocal fatigue, sedentary time and eating behaviour were assessed.

RESULTS

Thirty-three percent of university professors were found to have poor sleep quality (95% CI: 30.7% - 35.3%). Significant differences were identified based on sociodemographic factors, particularly gender, with 74.9% of men reporting good sleep quality compared to 50.5% of women. According to the regression analysis, sleep problems were associated with less improvement in vocal symptoms after rest and lower quality of life scores. Additionally, they were linked to greater vocal fatigue, physical discomfort in the voice, female gender, and higher scores in mental health disorders (stress, anxiety, and depression). University professors with poor sleep quality also showed lower levels of physical activity, increased sedentary time, and higher levels of uncontrolled and emotional eating.

CONCLUSIONS

Enhancing sleep quality and rest among university professors can boost cognitive and physical performance, foster better overall well-being, and lead to higher job satisfaction.

Impact of sleeping in a forest on sleep quality and mental well-being

Forest ecosystems have been acknowledged as a viable intervention for mitigating mental stress. However, there is a scarcity of research investigating the impact of forest environments on sleep. This study primarily investigated the physiological and psychological effects of sleep in a forest environment. It included a sample of 50 Chinese young adult students. A comparative analysis was conducted to examine the impact of sleeping in a forest environment as opposed to a controlled room setting (control). The researchers collected data on blood pressure, electroencephalography (EEG), and psychological markers. There was a statistically significant decrease in systolic blood pressure after the participants slept in a forest environment compared to when they slept in a room (control). Moreover, a notable increase in alpha- and beta-wave frequencies was detected in the forest environment. A more pronounced reduction in anxiety scores was observed in those exposed to a forest environment compared to those in the control group. The physiological and psychological data presented in this study demonstrate that engaging in forest leisure positively affects both physical and mental relaxation in young adults.

A Study Planning Exercise Associated with Decreased Distraction Levels among Introductory Biology Students

Students struggle to regulate their learning during independent study sessions. In this study, we ask whether an online behavioral intervention helped introductory students decrease distraction while studying. The intervention consisted of exam 1 reflection, exam 2 planning, and exam 2 reflection exercises. During planning, students formed a goal, mentally contrasted (MC) a positive outcome of their goal to their present reality, identified an obstacle, and formed an implementation intention (II) to overcome that obstacle. During reflection, students self-reported their distraction while studying. Distraction was the most frequently reported study obstacle, and decreasing distraction was the second most frequently reported study goal. While students who aimed to decrease distraction as a goal did not follow through, students who planned for distraction obstacles did follow through on decreasing distraction levels. Only about half of students generated an II that aligned with their study goal, which may provide one reason for the opposing follow-through of distraction framed as a goal versus as an obstacle. Lastly, we examined the specificity of students' II's and found no relationship with follow-through. Overall, MC with II holds promise as a self-regulatory technique to help introductory biology students change their behaviors while studying.

Effects of mental contrasting on sleep and associations with stress: A randomized controlled trial

Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) has been successfully applied to improve health-related behaviors (e.g. exercise). We explored its effectiveness to improve sleep outcomes beyond effects of sleep hygiene (SH) information, and investigated associations with stress. Eighty university employees (mean age: 29.6, SD = 4.5) were randomized to either a MCII + SH or a SH-only condition. During a baseline-week and a post-intervention week, sleep duration (Fitbit Alta and self-report), sleep quality, and stress were assessed daily and saliva was collected to assess the cortisol awakening response (CAR). In total, self-reported sleep quality and duration increased, but there was no meaningful condition*week interaction for sleep parameters or CAR. Higher average stress was associated with shorter sleep duration and lower sleep quality. Within-person, days with higher stress were followed by nights with lower sleep quality. Despite overall improvements, effects of MCII were not confirmed. MCII might be less effective to improve behaviors which are less controllable.