Doctorate in Clinical Psychology: Main Research Portfolio

: 1) The Association between Callous-Unemotional Traits and Executive Functioning in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review; 2) Understanding Referrals to a Community Rehabilitation Service; 3) "How Do You Sleep At Night?" The Relationship between Stressful Life Events, Sleep and Callous-Unemotional Traits.

Abstract

Callous-unemotional (CU) traits are characterised by a lack of guilt and empathy, and associated with more severe antisocial behaviour. In adults, it has been suggested that the presence of higher CU traits may also carry certain advantages, such as better quality sleep and enhanced resilience to stressful life events. Therefore, CU traits may have a protective effect on sleep after stress, but this has not yet been directly examined. Furthermore, as adolescence is a time of much transition and change in sleep and exposure to stressors in a broad range of life domains, it is important to investigate associations in this developmental period. This study aimed to investigate the association between stressful life events, CU traits, and sleep in adolescence. Specifically, whether stressful life events and sleep (duration, onset latency and awakenings) were longitudinally associated, and whether CU traits moderated this association. Secondary analysis of data from 8,262 participants from the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), a UK-based, national cohort study was carried out. Children self-reported on CU traits at age 11, and sleep at age 14. Caregivers reported on stressful life events at age 11. A greater number of stressful life events at age 11 was associated with shorter sleep duration, longer sleep onset latency and increased night awakenings at age 14. This highlights the long-term negative impact of stressful life events on sleep. There was a significant interaction between stressful life events and CU traits on night awakenings at age 14. Examining this further, children lower in CU traits experienced more awakenings after stressful life events than children higher in CU traits. This suggests that CU traits may confer a protective effect on sleep after exposure to stressful life events in adolescence.

Date of Award	22 Sept 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bath
Supervisor	Jennifer Allen (Supervisor) & Rachael Bedford (Supervisor)