REVENGE BEDTIME PROCRASTINATION AND BEYOND: NEUROBEHAVIORAL PATHWAYS OF COPING IN A HIGH-DEMAND ADOLESCENT ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

Sleep is defined as a reversible behavioral state of quiescence, reduced responsiveness to external stimuli, essential for physiological restoration and cognitive maintenance. This state is governed by the circadian rhythm and the homeostatic system, moderated by the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) and other neurobiological factors. Despite sleep being understood for its critical importance in survival, health, and cognition, people compromise and procrastinate sleep for various reasons; such as, physiological changes in puberty, environmental stressors- academic, extracurricular involvements, long working hours with flexible timings etc. Sleep procrastination can be defined as failing to go to bed at the intended time not caused by external circumstances, and resulting in insufficient sleep and impaired individual wellbeing. Research indicates that sleep procrastination occurs in reaction to a perceived lack of leisure during the day, and can be exacerbated by preexisting procrastinating tendencies. This chapter aims to condense current research to explore the relationship between adolescent student sleep practices and its effect on academic performance, focusing on intermediary factors and effect direction. It will examine sleep procrastination, sleep deprivation and the effects of those on executive functioning, the cascading effect of the interactions of these two variables and potential exacerbators of the same.