Training Track: Clinical 

Lab: Activity Matters Lab  

Advisor: Amy Bohnert, Ph.D. 

Office: Coffey Hall 208

Health behaviors and mental well-being

 

Emotion Reactivity and its Relation to Daily Affect and Sleep Experiences Among First-Year College Students

 

Individuals with high emotion reactivity may be at increased likelihood to experience emotions more intensely, frequently, and for longer periods of time than those with low emotion reactivity. This might lead to more extreme fluctuations in their daily experience of emotion. Additionally, those high in emotion reactivity may be at risk for poor sleep. The transition to college has been shown to be a difficult time for some students, and potentially contribute to these emotional fluctuations and shorter sleep duration. However, students high in emotion reactivity might be more likely to experience the negative effects of this transition than those with low emotion reactivity. The present study examined emotion reactivity in the context of day-to-day emotional functioning and sleep duration across the transition to college. First year college students (n=244) completed an initial survey and seven days of daily diary, reporting on their affect and sleep duration. Results demonstrated that those who experienced high levels of emotion reactivity also experienced increased negative affect, and larger day to day variations in negative affect than those who were low in emotion reactivity. Additionally, on days when individuals reported increased sleep duration they also tended to experience greater positive affect the following day. Future research should continue to explore the relation between emotion reactivity and sleep.

 

Amy Bohnert, PhD and Catherine DeCarlo Santiago, PhD