Cited by 18Sleep and related disordersImpact of Technology on AdolescentsHealth and Lifestyle Studies

The impact of social networks on sleep among a cohort of college students

Open access
Wang, Cheng, Mattingly, Stephen, Payne, Jessica, Lizardo, Omar, Hachen, David S.·2021·SSM - Population Health

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Sleep duration and quality are associated with physical and mental wellbeing. This paper examines social network effects on individual level change in the sleep quantity and quality from late adolescence to emerging adulthood and its associated factors, including the influence of peers on sleep behavior and the impact of changes in network size. METHODS: We use sleep data from 619 undergraduates at the University of Notre Dame obtained via Fitbit devices as part of the NetHealth project. The data were collected between August 16, 2015 and May 13, 2017. We model trends in sleep behaviors using latent growth-curve models. RESULTS: Controlling for the many factors known to impact sleep quantity and quality, we find two social network effects: increasing network size is associated with less sleep and a student's sleep levels are influenced by his or her peers. While we do not find any consistent decline in sleep quantity over the 637 days, daily fluctuations in sleep quantity are associated with changes in network size and the composition of a student's network. As a student's network gets bigger, s/he sleeps less, and when a student's contacts sleep more (or less) than s/he does, the student becomes more like his or her contacts and sleeps more (or less). CONCLUSIONS: Social networks can and do impact sleep, especially sleep quantity. In contexts where students want to have larger networks, the difficulties of increasing network size and maintaining larger networks negatively impact sleep. Because of peer influence, the effectiveness of interventions designed to improve sleep practices could be increased by leveraging student social networks to help diffuse better sleep habits.

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  • The first year of college is a major life transition period for many college students, marked by greater independence and autonomy, academic workload, efforts to establish new sleep habits outside the childhood home, and formation of new friendships.

    “The first year of college is a major life transition period for many college students (15), marked by greater independence and autonomy, academic workload, efforts to establish new sleep habits outside the childhood home (8), and formation of new friendships (16).”

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Arnett J.J. The Oxford handbook of emerging adulthood 2015 Oxford University Press New York, NY
  2. Liu X. Patacchini E. Rainone E. The allocation of time in sleep: A social network model with sampled data. Syracuse, NY: Center for policy research working papers Vol. 162 2013 Syracuse University Maxwell School

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Authors
Wang, C., Mattingly, S., Payne, J., Lizardo, O., & Hachen, D. S.
Affiliations
  • Wayne State University (US)
  • University of Notre Dame (US)
Corresponding author
Wang, Cheng
Venue
SSM - Population Health
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2021-12
Volume
16
Pages
100937
ISSN
2352-8273 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3204227584
Cited by
18
References
68
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 5
FWCI
2.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • SSM - Population Health (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
Funders
National Institutes of Health (1 R01 L117757-01A1)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health and Lifestyle Studies
Keywords
social networks, sleep duration, sleep quality, peer influence, network size, university students, emerging adulthood, late adolescence, Fitbit, sleep behavior change, network composition, health behavior interventions

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