How teen sleep timing and body clock shifts affect thinking, reward responses, and brain function
Impact of adolescent sleep and circadian disruption on cognition, reward processing, and cortical function
This project looks at how staying up late and having a shifted body clock changes teens' attention, decision-making, and response to rewards.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11198101 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You may be asked to wear sleep monitors and keep sleep logs so researchers can track when you sleep and how well you sleep. You could take computer tests that measure attention, impulsivity, and how you respond to rewards, and some people may have brain imaging or lab-based sleep/circadian sessions. The team will compare teens with different sleep timings and will try to separate the effects of circadian misalignment from simple sleep loss. Findings will combine behavioral tests, brain measures, and controlled sleep/circadian conditions to understand how nighttime habits affect the developing brain.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are adolescents (about 12–20 years old) who have late sleep schedules, irregular sleep, or interest in participating in sleep and circadian research.
Not a fit: People outside the adolescent age range or those without sleep or circadian issues are unlikely to see direct benefits from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could guide new ways to prevent risky behavior and substance use in teens and help improve attention and functioning by targeting sleep and circadian health.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies link teen sleep loss and evening chronotypes to worse attention and greater risk-taking, but isolating circadian misalignment from sleep loss in adolescents is a newer and less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
Pittsburgh, United States
- University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Torregrossa, Mary M — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Torregrossa, Mary M
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.