Colgate Assistant Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences Lauren Philbrook is working with two student researchers to study how environmental factors and bedtime routines impact the sleep quality and patterns of young children.
Child participants in the research wear a bracelet at night, similar to a Fitbit, for one week. Parents keep track of bedtimes, fill out a questionnaire, and for three days during data collection are asked to use cotton swabs to gather saliva to help researchers assess the children’s level of cortisol, a hormone that helps regulate sleep patterns.
