Background

Exposure to environmental risk factors increases the negative impact maltreatment has on children's development. Sleep ecology (i.e., sleep hygiene and home sleeping conditions) can be one of these factors. Poor sleep hygiene and suboptimal home sleeping conditions can alter sleep characteristics, which in turn, may lead to behavior problems (BPs), highly prevalent in maltreated preschoolers.

Objectives

Describe sleep ecology in maltreated preschoolers and explore associations between their sleep ecology, objective sleep characteristics and BPs.

Method

Parents (n = 22) completed the Children's Sleep Hygiene Scale (CSHS), and a sleep environment questionnaire to document sleep ecology. Children wore an actigraph to record objective sleep characteristics. Parents completed the Behavioral Assessment Scale for Children (BASC-2) to assess children's BPs. Descriptive and correlational analyses were performed.

Results

Most of the parents (90.5 %) reported adequate sleep hygiene. However, 20 parents (95.2 %) reported suboptimal home sleeping conditions. Better physiological and overall sleep hygiene were related to earlier sleep onset. Better emotional sleep hygiene was associated with shorter nighttime awakenings and better sleep efficiency. Later sleep onset was associated with lower anxiety, and longer 24-hour sleep duration with higher somatization. Better physiological sleep hygiene was associated with less depression, and better emotional sleep hygiene with less hyperactivity.

Conclusion

This study showed that sleep hygiene could be associated with maltreated preschoolers' sleep characteristics and BPs, and that their home sleeping conditions may be of concern. Associations between sleep ecology, objective sleep characteristics and BPs deserve to be better understood, and further explored.

中文翻译：

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求助于儿童保护服务的学龄前儿童的睡眠生态学、客观睡眠特征和行为问题：一项探索性研究

背景

接触环境风险因素会增加虐待对儿童发育的负面影响。睡眠生态学（即睡眠卫生和家庭睡眠条件）可能是这些因素之一。睡眠卫生差和家庭睡眠条件不佳会改变睡眠特征，进而可能导致行为问题 (BP)，这在受虐待的学龄前儿童中非常普遍。

目标

描述受虐待学龄前儿童的睡眠生态学，并探索他们的睡眠生态学、客观睡眠特征和血压之间的关联。

方法

父母 ( n  = 22) 完成了儿童睡眠卫生量表 (CSHS) 和睡眠环境调查问卷以记录睡眠生态。孩子们戴着活动记录仪来记录客观的睡眠特征。父母完成儿童行为评估量表 (BASC-2) 以评估儿童的血压。进行了描述性和相关性分析。

结果

大多数父母 (90.5 %) 表示睡眠卫生良好。然而，20 位家长 (95.2 %) 报告家庭睡眠条件不理想。更好的生理和整体睡眠卫生与较早入睡有关。更好的情绪睡眠卫生与更短的夜间觉醒和更好的睡眠效率有关。晚入睡与较低的焦虑相关，较长的 24 小时睡眠持续时间与较高的躯体化相关。更好的生理睡眠卫生与更少的抑郁症相关，更好的情绪睡眠卫生与更少的多动症相关。

结论

这项研究表明，睡眠卫生可能与受虐待的学龄前儿童的睡眠特征和血压有关，他们的家庭睡眠条件可能值得关注。睡眠生态学、客观睡眠特征和血压之间的关联值得更好地理解和进一步探索。