Biased processing of sleep-related information in children 'at risk' of insomnia: a pilot study & clinical research portfolio

This study piloted methodology applied in the fields of Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Panic Disorder and Alcoholism, to investigate attentional bias towards sleep-related stimuli as a factor in the predisposition of insomnia. Following a ‘tired-state induction’ two groups of participants – ‘at risk’ children of adults with insomnia, and control children of good sleepers – completed a sleep-related Emotional Stroop task. Subsequently, they were asked to comment on the content of the Stroop words; whether or not the children reported sleep-related content was recorded. There was no evidence of attentional bias towards sleep-related stimuli in ‘at risk’ children relative to controls. However there was a trend regarding children’s reports of the words’ content; a greater percentage of the ‘at risk’ children reported sleep-related content, than controls. These results do not provide conclusive support for the role of attentional bias in the predisposition of insomnia. The results are discussed in the context of the methodological limitations of the pilot study. Suggestions for future modifications are put forward