Evaluation of the effectiveness of sleep hygiene education and FITBIT devices on quality of sleep and psychological worry: a pilot quasi-experimental study among first-year college students

Wegdan Bani Issa; Heba Hijazi; Hadia Radwan; Roba Saqan; Alham Al-Sharman; A B Rani Samsudin; Randa Fakhry; Nabeel Al-Yateem; Rachel C Rossiter; Ali Ibrahim; Ibrahim Moustafa; Farah Naja; Mohamad Alameddine; Nada Abbas; Dana N Abdelrahim; Arwa Al-Shujairi; Manal Awad

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1182758

Evaluation of the effectiveness of sleep hygiene education and FITBIT devices on quality of sleep and psychological worry: a pilot quasi-experimental study among first-year college students

Front Public Health. 2023 Aug 23:11:1182758. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1182758. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Wegdan Bani Issa¹, Heba Hijazi^{1

2}, Hadia Radwan¹, Roba Saqan³, Alham Al-Sharman¹, A B Rani Samsudin⁴, Randa Fakhry¹, Nabeel Al-Yateem¹, Rachel C Rossiter⁵, Ali Ibrahim⁶, Ibrahim Moustafa¹, Farah Naja¹, Mohamad Alameddine¹, Nada Abbas⁷, Dana N Abdelrahim⁸, Arwa Al-Shujairi⁹, Manal Awad¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ College of Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
² Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
³ Research Institute of Medical and Health Sciences University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
⁴ College of Dental Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
⁵ School of Nursing, Paramedicine and Healthcare Sciences, Faculty of Science and Health, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, NSW, Australia.
⁶ College of Business and Economics, United Arab Emirates University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
⁷ Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁸ Research Institute of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
⁹ Glaxosmithkline, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
¹⁰ University Dental Hospital Sharjah, College of Dental Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.

Abstract

Background: College students report disturbed sleep patterns that can negatively impact their wellbeing and academic performance.

Objectives: This study examined the effect of a 4-week sleep hygiene program that included sleep education and actigraph sleep trackers (FITBITs) on improving sleep quality and reducing psychological worry without control group.

Design settings and participants: A pilot quasi-experimental design, participants were randomly selected medical and health sciences from a university students in the United-Arab-Emirates.

Methods: Students were asked to wear FITBITs and log their daily sleep data and completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ). Extensive sleep hygiene education was delivered via lectures, a WhatsApp group, and the Blackboard platform. In total, 50 students completed pre-and post-assessments and returned FITBIT data.

Results: There was a significant difference in the prevalence of good sleep postintervention compared with pre-intervention (46% vs. 28%; p = 0.0126). The mean PSQI score was significantly lower post-intervention compared with pre-intervention (6.17 ± 3.16 vs. 7.12.87; p = 0.04, Cohen's d 0.33). After the intervention, subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, and daytime dysfunction were significantly improved compared with pre-intervention (p < 0.05). In addition, FITBIT data showed total sleep time and the number of restless episodes per night were significantly improved postintervention compared with pre-intervention (p = 0.013). The mean PSWQ score significantly decreased from pre-intervention to p = 0.049, Cohen' d = 0.25. The correlation between PSQI and PSWQ scores was significant post-intervention (β = 0.40, p = 0.02).

Conclusion: Our results may inform university educational policy and curricular reform to incorporate sleep hygiene awareness programs to empower students and improve their sleep habits.

Keywords: FITBIT; actigraph sleep trackers; college students; sleep hygiene; sleep quality.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Educational Status
Humans
Sleep
Sleep Hygiene*
Sleep Quality*
Students