The is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

Small financial incentives can get college students to go to bed earlier and sleep significantly longer. That鈥檚 what my colleagues and I found through an that involved 508 students at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Oxford.

When the students were offered $7.50 per night Monday through Thursday 鈥� a total of $30 per week 鈥� to sleep longer, they were 13% more likely than those who were not offered the incentive to sleep seven to nine hours. They were also 16% less likely to sleep fewer than six hours.

We collected data from wearable activity trackers, surveys and time-use diaries. The people to whom the incentives were offered were chosen randomly from the group of people who agreed to be part of the study.

The incentives were offered for three weeks, but the effects lasted even after they were removed. Specifically, those who had initially gotten the incentives were still 9% more likely to sleep seven to nine hours per night for up to six weeks after students stopped receiving them. This suggests the effects of the incentives may last for several weeks.

The time-use diaries documented a reduction in screen time. That is, students spent less time watching TV and videos or using smart devices during the experiment. There was no evidence of a decline in time spent studying or in time spent socializing. This suggests students gave up screen time rather than time with friends to get to bed earlier and sleep longer.

Why it matters

Sleep deprivation has been as a . It can have , decision-making and productivity. Our findings shine light on what it takes to get people to adopt better sleeping habits and avoid these negative outcomes.

Sleep deprivation is a big problem among college students. Most college students the .

Good sleep is associated with . Sleep deprivation and poor sleep quality have been linked to .

Since college often marks the first time young adults may find themselves fully in charge of their schedules, they could benefit from help or incentives to form good sleep habits.

indicate that many people feel they are . When people experience a night of poor sleep, the effects are felt the next day.

Our results suggest that just knowing about the benefits of good sleep is not enough for people to actually adopt better sleeping habits. Rather, it may take incentives.

Interventions that help individuals form routines, such as reduced screen time, may have longer-lasting effects.

What is still unknown

A relevant question is whether similar people can be motivated to get better sleep without monetary incentives and with less costly nudges.

What鈥檚 next

In the future, we plan to explore whether interventions to improve sleep habits during college may also help students boost their academic performance. We鈥檇 also like to examine whether these interventions can work with different populations and in different places.

This article is republished from under a Creative Commons license. Read the .

After long-standing research showed the devastating impact of early classes on teens鈥� health, California鈥檚 district middle schools will start no earlier than 8 am; and high schools will start no later than 8:30 am. Rural district schools are exempted from the state mandate. 

Now, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts and the Virgin Islands legislators are now considering mandated school start time changes. 

The California , passed in 2019, was debated for its effect on all students, parents, and teachers 鈥� but not without qualms over how it would disrupt families鈥� schedules and create other problems. 

 Cindy Velasco, a working California parent with two high school kids, said she supported the later start time law for several reasons, including the difficulty of juggling dropping off her kids for early classes and getting to work on time.  

鈥淚t鈥檚 difficult for parents because our work day starts earlier,鈥� Velasco said. 鈥淗aving to take my kids to school later is difficult for me. I had to rely on my family to help my daughter get to school.鈥�

Most important, Velasco said, was the negative effect on learning she saw early classes had on her children.  

Researchers who have been investigating the issue for years agree. 

鈥淭he school start time, when it’s early, is crushing adolescent sleep,鈥� said Mary Carskadon, director of sleep research and chronobiology at Bradley Hospital in Rhode Island.

鈥淲hen school starts very early, they [early teenagers] end up kind of stuck because they are biologically unable to sleep early,鈥� said Carskadon, who has studied sleep and circadian rhythms for decades.

鈥淚f they have to get up at 5:30 to 6 a.m. to go to school, they can鈥檛 fall asleep at 9 or 10 p.m. to get even 8 hours of sleep, which isn鈥檛 enough sleep for these early teenagers.鈥�

Kyla Wahlstrom, a professor of education administration policy at the University of Minnesota, who  researches school start times, said the brains of kids who are getting up as early as 6:30 a.m. to get to school starting at 8 a.m. 鈥渁re still in sleep mode.鈥� 

鈥淭here鈥檚 all this constellation of good outcomes 鈥� less depression, less drug use, less cigarette and alcohol use, less premarital sex鈥hen there is a later starting time for the students to get to school, which gives them more sleep in the morning,鈥� Wahlstrom said, adding other outcomes, including performing better at school and involved in less car accidents.

Troy Flint, the chief information officer of the California School Boards Association, said the CSBA opposed the law when it was being debated in the state legislature, in part, because of the 鈥渢remendous hardship for many families that had inflexible work schedules or that needed the student to work for financial reasons 鈥� siblings who have childcare responsibilities.鈥�

Flint said the California School Boards Association, which represents about 900 schools districts and county offices of education in California, did not oppose the law to change school start times 鈥渋n concept.鈥�

鈥淲hat we opposed was the universal mandate which required every school district to adopt the law regardless of individual situation,鈥� Flint said.

Research on school start times 鈥� and their effect on students 鈥� started in the 1990s as school districts across the country implemented later classes. 

Earlier this year, New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal (D) and Assemblyman Craig J. Coughlin (D) introduced two in the Legislature to move the start times for high schools no earlier  than 8:30am beginning in the 2024-25 school year. 

 鈥淭here鈥檚 no real timeline. We鈥檙e still having conversations with stakeholders,鈥� said Gopal鈥檚 policy director Micharel Illiano. 鈥淲e are trying to make sure we are being cautious and responsible and not moving too quickly.鈥�

 New Jersey School Boards Association spokesperson Janet Bamford said the organization does not support a state mandate for school start times, and that the decision should be made locally because of the 鈥渉urdles to implementing later start times.鈥�

Bamford cited 鈥渢he potential for increased transportation costs, difficulty in scheduling after-school activities, unintended impacts on other students 鈥� particularly elementary school children 鈥� and programs, and disruption to family schedules.鈥� 

In New York, State Assembly member Harvey Epstein and State Senator Robert Jackson in 2021 that would require all New York state public schools to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m.

鈥淭he bill is taking a long time 鈥� I don鈥檛 know the timeline鈥� said Epstein. 鈥淭his is a conversation around health and safety because we know the science, the medical data is there, and I think we need to educate people about how important it is.鈥�

Massachusetts and the are also considering state mandated later school start times.

When her interviews run late in the winter months, the sun is already setting over the Pacific, less than two miles away. Her walk home takes at least 20 minutes on 鈥渂usy and chaotic streets,鈥� and she doesn鈥檛 feel safe taking shortcuts through alleys.听

鈥淚t can be annoying when it’s dark and I鈥檓 walking home, or if I have to wait for someone to pick me up, I feel uncomfortable standing there,鈥� said the ninth grader. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 still light out, that鈥檚 a positive for me.鈥�

Woodrick, like many teens, says permanent daylight saving time would better accommodate her busy life and brushes off concerns about getting up for school in the dark. And if the U.S. House embraces the idea as enthusiastically as the Senate, the nation could soon see the end of its annual spring forward/fall back ritual.

On March 15, the Senate unanimously passed the , which would go into effect in November 2023. Proponents, including the bill鈥檚 sponsor, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, say the change would reduce crime, prevent childhood obesity and boost . Senate education Chair Patty Murray of Washington voiced her enthusiasm during a in November.

鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy that every fall we interrupt everybody鈥檚 sleep schedule,鈥� she said. 鈥淣obody knows what time it is for weeks on end after that, and it鈥檚 dark at 4:30 [p.m.] in my state.鈥�

It鈥檚 unclear how quickly the House will take up the bill.  Following an energy and commerce subcommittee earlier this month, Rep. Frank Pallone, a New Jersey Democrat who chairs the full committee, said he hopes lawmakers can soon 鈥渆nd the silliness of the current system.鈥� But some members, including Rep. Pramila Jayapal 鈥� also of Washington 鈥� that permanent daylight saving time is the way to go. 

Dave Dougherty, executive director of the National High School Athletic Coaches Association, said he hopes the House takes more time to consider other perspectives.听聽

鈥淥ne of the biggest challenges is kids who are overly tired and have not gotten enough rest,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 complicated. It鈥檚 more than a simple fix.鈥�

Sleep researchers agree ending the biannual clock adjustment makes sense, but disagree about how: Adolescents, they say, need more daylight in the morning, not the evening 鈥� the reason why there鈥檚 been in recent years to start high school classes later. The U.S. tried permanent daylight saving time in the 1970s to save energy, but the law because people didn鈥檛 like getting up before sunrise.

鈥淲e may shift the time of day, but our internal clocks are still responsive to morning light,鈥� said Wendy Troxel, a behavioral and social scientist and sleep medicine specialist at the RAND Corp. She said the Senate the research in making their decision. 鈥淢ore and summer barbecues sound delightful, but think about December.鈥�

In puberty, adolescents鈥� shift. It鈥檚 harder for them to wind down at 8 or 9 p.m., and they might not get drowsy until 10 or 11 p.m. Many teens already don鈥檛 get and some research shows get less than their white peers. Inadequate sleep has also been linked to anxiety, anger and depression.听

With reports that the pandemic has contributed to , experts say a permanent switch to standard time would be a healthier option.听

鈥淲e鈥檒l have a bunch of zombied out people in the mornings,鈥� said Dr. Rafael Pelayo, a sleep specialist and clinical professor at Stanford University, predicting the need for artificial light boxes, more warning signs at crosswalks and police on the streets.

The 鈥榓bility to wake up鈥�

Pelayo is on the board of r, a national organization that advocates for pushing start times back for older students to 8:30 a.m. 鈥� often an hour later than many high schools start now. Districts in 46 states have made the shift, and California passed , going into effect this fall, that delays start times to at least 8 a.m for middle school and 8:30 a.m. for high school.听

Terra Ziporyn Snider, the organization鈥檚 executive director, said it鈥檚 likely more states could follow California鈥檚 lead if the bill becomes law. Legislation this session is on its way to Gov. Kathy Hochul and has been introduced in and .听

Research shows from pushing start times to at least 8:30 a.m., Troxel said, and allowing teens more time to snooze already has bipartisan support. Rubio has endorsed , and progressive Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York she鈥檚 still angry that her high school鈥檚 trigonometry and pre-calculus classes started at 7:20 a.m.听

But year-round daylight saving time 鈥渨ould work against later school start times,鈥� especially in northern regions of the country and on the western edges of time zones, where the sun rises later, said Dr. Beth Malow, a professor of neurology and pediatrics at Vanderbilt University.听

鈥淚 honestly think legislators don鈥檛 understand it,鈥� Malow said. 鈥淜ids will be going to school in the dark. That affects their getting enough sleep and their ability to wake up and be alert for school.鈥�

The Congressional push has yet to meet with concerted opposition from educators or their advocates in Washington. The National PTA, the nation鈥檚 two largest teachers unions and the National School Boards Association support efforts to make .

鈥極ne more cup of coffee鈥�

If the bill becomes law, students say they鈥檒l adjust.听

Sara Falluji, a junior at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington. Kentucky, thinks more light in the evening will benefit 鈥� not harm 鈥� students鈥� moods.

鈥淪tudents are inside the school building for seven to eight hours on average,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat means minimal time spent outside, something that is really important for the mental and physical health of students.鈥�

She also sees an upside for young drivers. Driving to school before sunup can help teens with learner鈥檚 permits clock the required number of nighttime driving hours, she said.

In general, however, teens are thinking about what they鈥檒l be able to do after school with more daylight.听

Raima Dutt, another Kentucky student, plays golf, a fall sport. She agreed she鈥檇 prefer to have more light at the end of the day.听

鈥淎s the season goes on, we have to rush our practices and games to finish before the sun sets,鈥� said the sophomore at duPont Manual High School in Louisville. She added that darkness at dinner time makes her feel rushed in the evenings.

Devin Walton, a ninth-grader at South High School in Torrance, California, likes science and said he doesn鈥檛 have a hard time paying attention in biology, his first class of the day. He鈥檚 also a runner and has track meets that can stretch into the early evening.听

鈥淚 would feel pressure to leave work and rush home to make sure he鈥檚 not riding his bike or walking home in the dark,鈥� said his mother Krystal Walton. 鈥淚 feel like it鈥檚 just one hour. We might make one more cup of coffee.鈥�

When parents tell Denise Pope, an adolescent well-being expert, they鈥檙e worried for their children鈥檚 mental health, she responds with a question.

鈥淗ow many hours are they sleeping?鈥�

That catches many parents off guard, says Pope, co-founder of the Stanford University-affiliated nonprofit Challenge Success. Few see their teenage children鈥檚 mental health as linked to their sleep schedules. And besides, most parents go to bed before their high school-aged kids anyway, right? When Pope points out that teenagers need about nine hours of sleep each night, many parents scoff.

They shouldn鈥檛.

As concerns for youth depression, anxiety and suicide have skyrocketed amid a deadly pandemic that disrupted schools across the country and isolated teens from their friends, researchers agree that consistent, sweet slumber can go a long way toward making students feel better.

In recent years, school leaders have highlighted that quality sleep is an important precondition for academic success, helping young people pay attention and retain material. In a 2019 effort to safeguard rest for teens, California pushed back school start times for middle and high school students statewide. But the mental benefits extend far beyond learning, experts say, emphasizing sleep as a key to healthy emotional regulation for young people.

By way of explanation, Pope offers a metaphor, which she credits to psychologist Lisa Demour.

鈥淚f you had sort of a magic pill that you could take that would help increase your mental health, increase your physical health, lower your stress, make you more efficient,鈥� she says, most people would be itching for a dose.

Well, we do have that magic pill. 鈥淚t鈥檚 called sleep,鈥� says Pope.

But according to her research, teens are skimping on this vital resource, and the problem has only worsened with COVID-19.

In fall 2020, Pope鈥檚 Challenge Success team joined with NBC to on their well-being and academic engagement through the pandemic. They found that high schoolers were getting an average of 6.7 hours of sleep per night 鈥� well below the recommended nine-hour benchmark, which only 7 percent of students were hitting. Five percent of students regularly slept under four hours per night, the research team found.

Even though remote school eliminated commutes for many students, 43 percent of high schoolers reported that they were sleeping less since the pandemic struck, compared to only 23 who reported sleeping more. Anecdotal accounts indicate that quarantine spurred many teens to , and using naps as a coping mechanism when they started to spiral.

鈥淢y sleep schedule really went off the rails when the pandemic started,鈥� Bridgette Adu-Wadier, now a senior at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia, told 社区黑料. During the day, on top of attending classes, she had to keep an eye on her two younger brothers, first- and second-graders who would constantly interrupt her with quarrels over toys, requests for help with schoolwork and messes to clean up in the kitchen.

Distracted days meant she frequently had to log late nights working to complete a never-ending stream of assignments. Sometimes, she would find herself nodding off while working. 鈥淚t was just really hard managing my time with all the things that I had to juggle,鈥� said Adu-Wadier.

The Virginia high schooler has not been alone. Students in a tricky AP course she鈥檚 enrolled in share a group chat, and on nights before assignments are due, messages buzz into the wee hours of the morning as peers scramble to finish. In the mornings, some of her friends can鈥檛 drag themselves out of bed for online class. Throughout this year, peers 鈥渄efinitely were in a similar boat,鈥� says Adu-Wadier.

At the same time, isolation and worries for COVID-19 have exacerbated levels of teen stress and anxiety nationwide. Between April and October 2020, the share of mental health-related emergency department visits . Over 1 in 5 teenagers surveyed by EdWeek Research Center in April said , compared to less than 1 in 10 who said it went down.

Based on increased demand for behavioral health services over the past four months, Colorado Children鈥檚 Hospital on May 25 declared a . The hospital鈥檚 chief medical officer said the situation is more severe than anything he has seen in his 20 years of practice.

Though experts say it鈥檚 , parents of teens who took their own lives say that the circumstances of quarantine contributed to their children鈥檚 desperate condition.

Susanne Button, a clinical psychologist who directs high school programming for the Jed Foundation, an organization dedicated to preventing youth suicide, is especially worried for LGBTQ+ youth. Queer and trans teens struggled with high rates of suicidal ideation even before the pandemic, she says, and in the past year, many have been forced to .

Working with such students, Button emphasizes the importance of good sleep hygiene.

鈥淵ou can’t sleep off some of these stressors, but you certainly can link sleep into resilience,鈥� she told 社区黑料. 鈥淎dequate sleep for teenagers stabilizes mood and reduces irritability and depression.鈥�

鈥淎dolescents who don’t have enough sleep tend to actually engage in more high-risk behavior when they don’t feel mentally calm or happy,鈥� continued Button. 鈥淎dolescents who get enough sleep tend to make better decisions and be less impulsive around risk-taking when they’re feeling stressed or distressed.鈥�

But for students like Adu-Wadier, budgeting time to rest can be a challenge. She knows her well-being and mental health took a hit through much of the past year 鈥� she sometimes lacked patience, felt irritable and snapped at family members because she was over-tired 鈥� but it can be hard to find time to snooze when assignments are piling up, she says.

鈥淸Sleep] ends up taking a backseat.鈥� For many peers, she explained, the choice is a simple cost-benefit calculus: 鈥淭hey’ll feel tired, but at least they won’t be failing a class.鈥�

In such cases, Pope of Challenge Success suggests a compromise. Every week, try to push bedtime just a few minutes earlier.

鈥淒on’t let yourself look at that extra TikTok video, don’t stay up for the news, whatever it is. Just try to move that needle by 15 minutes at a time.鈥�

Screen use before bed is something parents ought to monitor, Pope says. A mother herself, she鈥檚 had to institute a no-devices-at-night rule for her kids.

鈥淧arenting needs to change as technology changes,鈥� Pope says.

Of course, many youth live in conditions where it can be tricky to cultivate friendly sleeping conditions. Perhaps they’re staying with relatives or in a homeless shelter. Still, even small changes can help, says Pope, who recommends earplugs and sleep masks to mute outside stimuli.

As for Adu-Wadier, the long hours she logged studying for high-level courses have paid off. This spring, she earned admission to study at Northwestern University on a full scholarship.

On the night she got the good news, the college-bound senior didn鈥檛 stay up late celebrating. Instead, she tucked herself in at 10:30 p.m.

鈥淚 just went straight to bed,鈥� Adu-Wadier remembers. 鈥淚 didn’t spend a ton of time trying to do assignments or work on college applications because I didn’t need to do any more college applications. So I just attempted to go to sleep.鈥�

Whether it was the news from Northwestern or a full night鈥檚 rest, the next day had a certain shine to it.

鈥淚 woke up feeling a lot different,鈥� said Adu-Wadier. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very great feeling.鈥�