Effect of Sleep on College Students
Introduction
For over a century, there has been growing interest among scholars concerning the relationship between sleep and cognitive function. Various studies have indicated a strong association between the proper quality of sleep and excellent cognitive abilities, which includes improved learning abilities and memory (Okano et al., 2). These findings do not become apparent in laboratory settings only as self-reports by students indicate that those students who enjoyed proper sleep in the comfort of their homes exhibit excellent academic performance. Therefore, there is a strong argument that getting quality sleep is an essential aspect of college students’ lives as it can be a crucial contributor to the academic success of these students.
Importance of Sleep
Many scholars believe that getting enough sleep is essential to enhancing memory consolidation. The exact mechanism behind this relationship remains mostly unclear, although the mechanism links these three aspects: sleep, neuro-plasticity, and memory. However, the hypothesis suggests that during sleep, specific synaptic connections that are active when awake become stronger during sleep (Okano et al., 3). This strengthening process allows for the consolidation of memory. On the other hand, synaptic connections that were inactive during awake-periods become weaker. Sleep plays an essential role in memory consolidation, a process that allows individuals to remember the thing they learned better. This feature promotes better academic performance for the individuals.
According to Okano et al. (24), the length and quality of sleep on the night before an assessment does not have a significant effect on the performance of the students on the tests. Instead, the quality of sleep should be consistent over a considerable period, such as an entire month. Students that got enough sleep over at least one month before an examination performed well. Therefore, it becomes clear that better quality of sleep for more extended periods and consistently contributed significantly to better academic performance among college students.
Incidences of stress and difficulty in sleeping are predominant among college students (Amaral et al., 2). The contributing factors to this finding include cognitive emotion regulation and repetitive negative thinking. Repetitive negative thinking may result from fear of failure in the examination or the entire course. Such thoughts have adverse effects on the general well-being of college students resulting in irregular sleeping patterns. Consequently, such students may suffer from ill-health associated with a lack of enough sleep (Dinis & Bragança, 1). Poor sleeping habits harm the academic performance of college students.
Lack of enough sleep contributes to higher levels of fatigue and sleepiness among individuals. Tired individuals cannot concentrate effectively on the lesson at hand due to poor attention and reduced cognitive function (Okana et al., 3). Studies indicate that the cognitive function of individuals who have been awake for seventeen hours is at par with an individual who has a systemic alcohol concentration of 0.05%. These factors have a significant contribution to poor academic performance among college students.
Conclusion
College students and any other students require adequate sleep if they wish to have good academic results. The quality of sleep, duration of sleep, and consistency of sleeping patterns are essential aspects that play a definitive role in influencing the academic performance of individuals, regardless of their level of education.
Works Cited
Amaral, Ana Paula, et al. “Sleep difficulties in college students: The role of stress, affect and cognitive processes.” Psychiatry Research 260 (2018): 331-337.
Dinis, João, and Miguel Bragança. “Quality of sleep and depression in college students: a systematic review.” Sleep Science 11.4 (2018): 290.
Okano, Kana, et al. “Sleep quality, duration, and consistency are associated with better academic performance in college students.” NPJ Science of Learning 4.1 (2019): 1-5.