Nightly sleep predicts next-morning expectations for stress and positive experiences

Abstract

Objectives Abundant research has linked nightly sleep as an antecedent of daily psychosocial experiences; however, less is known about sleep’s influence on daily expectations of these experiences. Therefore, this research examined the day-to-day associations of sleep quality, duration, and efficiency with next-day expectations for stress(ors) and positive experiences, as well as whether these expectations were related to end-of-day reports of physical symptoms. Methods In Study 1, U.S. adults (n = 354; ages 19 to 74) completed twice-daily diaries for 10 weekdays about sleep, expectations for encountering daily stressors and positive events, and physical symptoms. In Study 2, adults in Canada (n = 246; ages 25 to 87) wore a sleep watch for 14 consecutive days and completed mobile surveys 5x/day about sleep, stressfulness and pleasantness expectations, and physical symptoms. Results Multilevel models indicated that self-reported sleep quality and duration, but not efficiency, were associated with lower next-day expectations for stressors (Study 1) and stressfulness (Study 2). Self-reported sleep quality (Study 1) and all sleep indices (Study 2) predicted greater next-day expectations for positive events and pleasantness, respectively. For actigraphy-assessed sleep (Study 2), only longer-than-usual actigraphic sleep duration was associated with lower stressfulness expectations, whereas both sleep duration and efficiency were positively linked with daily pleasantness expectations. Only pleasantness expectations (Study 2)—but not daily stressfulness and event expectations (Study 1)—predicted end-of-day physical symptoms. Conclusion Findings suggest the importance of sleep on expectations of next-day stress and positive experiences, of which may have implications for daily physical health.

Exploring the Interplay Between Stress, Sleep, and Health: A Special Issue Commemorating the Contributions of Dr. Martica Hall

“…These articles cover a wide range of topics, methodologies, and populations that collectively demonstrate the widespread impact of stress and sleep on health. We believe Tica would have been pleased to see a single issue addressing topics as diverse as the impact of sleep on cardiovascular health in physicians experiencing burnout (1); the role of biobehavioral rhythm stability in predicting the metabolic syndrome (2); dyadic sleep influences on posttraumatic symptoms among cancer patients and their caregivers (3); and prospective, often bidirectional associations between sleep and psychosocial factors (4–6) and mental health (7,8). Several articles also highlight the dynamic nature of sleep during critical periods across the life span (9) and multidimensional conceptualizations of sleep health (10), ideas and methodologies championed by Tica.…”