1115 Sleep Misperception, Anxiety, And Sleep Quality

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Sleep misperception is a phenomenon often identified in insomnia literature, in which individuals subjective reporting does not match objective measurements of their own sleep. Research indicates that anxiety symptoms may play a role in sleep misperception. This study assessed the relationship between sleep misperception, sleep quality, and anxiety in a young adult population with sub-clinical insomnia and anxiety symptoms. Linear regression models examined the relationships between sleep quality, anxiety symptoms, and sleep misperception. Methods This sample consisted of 130 young adults recruited from a University in the Bronx, NY. Anxiety was assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Objective measures of sleep were collected via wrist-based actigraphy over a period of 7-14 days. Subjective sleep measures were collected via an online sleep diary. A misperception index was calculated to determine the discrepancy between subjective and objective sleep measures based on a formula established in previous research. Results Higher anxiety symptoms were associated with greater sleep disturbance. Higher sleep misperception was not associated with greater sleep disturbance. There was a significant, positive relationship between sleep misperception and anxiety symptoms (r=0.18, p=0.000). Gender emerged as an important covariate, with males exhibiting significantly higher sleep misperception and underestimating TST (M=-0.31, SD=0.22) compared to females (M=-0.18, SD=0.12). Conclusion Sleep misperception was not related to sleep quality, but was strongly related to anxiety symptoms in this population. In a sub-clinical young adult sample, sleep misperception is associated with anxiety but not sleep quality, and has significant gender differences. These findings contribute to sleep misperception literature with potential applications in diagnosis and treatment of insomnia and anxiety. Support n/a