Associations between COVID-19 sleep patterns, depressive symptoms, loneliness, and academic engagement: a latent profile analysis

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had important implications for college students’ socioemotional and academic well-being. Sleep problems were common during this time, which may have further impacted well-being. Methods: Five hundred and fifty-two college students (M_age = 19.81; 58% female; 42% White) completed a survey in Fall 2021 reflecting on behaviors/emotions (sleep, depressive symptoms, loneliness, academic engagement) experienced during the first peak of COVID-19 and over the past month. Latent profile analysis was conducted to identify subgroups of sleepers during peak-COVID in relation to well-being during and after the initial peak. Results: Four sleep profiles were identified: Optimal (49%), High Latency/Medicated (23%), Average/Fair (16%), Low-Duration (12%). During peak-COVID, depression and loneliness were highest in High Latency/Medicated and Low-Duration subgroups; academic engagement was highest for Optimal sleepers. Following peak-COVID, academic engagement was highest for Average/Fair sleepers. Conclusions: Findings highlight heterogeneity in students’ sleep patterns during the initial peak of COVID-19 and their relation to well-being during and post-peak-pandemic.

Keywords:

• College students
• COVID-19
• latent profile analysis
• mental health
• sleep
• well-being

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of Arizona State University.

Data availability statement

Data can be made available upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This project was supported by the Arizona Department of Health Services under Interagency Service Agreement #CTR052579.