Sleep Disturbances and Family Environment Correlates in

Director: Marcie C. Goeke-Morey, Ph.D. Background: A growing empirical literature supports that sleep problems are prevalent among clinically anxious youth. Children with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) report especially high rates of sleep problems yet systematic investigation of the specific nature of sleep disturbances through both objective and subjective sleep measures is unavailable in non-depressed children with primary GAD. Research suggests that overlapping biological and environmental risk factors underlie the complex bidirectional relationship between sleep and anxiety; however identification of potentially modifiable environmental risk factors for sleep disturbance in pediatric GAD, including family and parenting factors, is also lacking. Objective: To address these gaps and identify potential intervention targets specific to pediatric GAD, the current study examines specific sleep problems and proposed family correlates in non-depressed pre-pubescent children with primary GAD as compared to their healthy peers utilizing both actigraphy and parent-reported measures of sleep. Method: 52 children (ages 7-11 years), including 29 with GAD and 23 healthy controls, participated. All underwent structured diagnostic assessment. Parents and children reported on family factors. Sleep was assessed vi