Understanding what affects young children's sleep
Defining Relationships of Early Mediators and Moderators of Sleep (DREAMS)
This project looks at how family stress, housing problems, screen time, and biological stress markers relate to sleep in young children and their families.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Cincinnati NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Cincinnati, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11180425 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you'll be asked about family life, housing, and your child's screen use and stress through brief surveys and interviews. Your child’s sleep will be tracked with sleep questionnaires and likely wearable sleep monitors, and the team may collect simple biological samples to measure stress-related markers. The researchers will follow children through the transition to kindergarten to see how early sleep patterns relate to behavior and learning. The goal is to combine family, social, and biological information to paint a complete picture of early childhood sleep health.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Families with infants and young children (roughly birth through early childhood/kindergarten age), especially those who have concerns about sleep or face stressors like unstable housing or high family stress.
Not a fit: Adults or older children outside the early childhood age range, and people seeking immediate clinical treatment rather than participation in a research study, may not receive direct benefit from joining.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Findings could help doctors spot and prevent sleep problems earlier and guide better support for families, especially those facing economic or housing stress.
How similar studies have performed: Previous research has linked family and biological factors to sleep, but combining psychosocial stress, housing instability, screen use, and physiological stress in early childhood is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Cincinnati, United States
- University of Cincinnati — Cincinnati, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bates, Randi — University of Cincinnati
- Study coordinator: Bates, Randi
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.