Parent knowledge of child sleep: a pilot study in a children's hospital cohort

Publication date: Available online 17 February 2016
Source:Sleep Medicine
Author(s): Philippa S. McDowall, Angela Campbell, Dawn Elder
Objectives/BackgroundParent knowledge about child sleep may influence parent efforts to support healthy sleep in their children. The present study aimed to describe parent knowledge of child sleep in a hospital cohort, and potential correlates including barriers to children's bedtime, information seeking about child sleep, and demographics such as child age, parent education, and household income.Methods115 parents of children aged 2 - 12 years attending hospital inpatient wards or day ward were approached individually and invited to complete the questionnaire. Questionnaire items were modified measures in published articles, identified through literature review, or developed from clinical experience.ResultsParents on average answered half of the knowledge questions accurately, and knowledge about child sleep was positively correlated with education and household income. Parents who sought information from books or the internet had greater knowledge about child sleep than parents who did not endorse these sources of information. The accuracy of parent estimations of their child's sleep need varied: 55% were within recommendations, 26% underestimated their child's sleep need, and 19% overestimated sleep need. Parents who correctly estimated their child's sleep needs had higher education and income on average, and were more likely to parent younger children (age 2 – 5). Parents who overestimated or underestimated sleep needs were more likely to identify greater barriers to their child's bedtime.ConclusionOverall knowledge of child sleep in this sample was poor, consistent with samples from North American communities. Future research should examine whether knowledge about child sleep, and barriers to children's bedtimes, are related to actual child sleep behaviours, or parent practices to support their children to achieve a healthy sleep.



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