The influence of Sleep patterns on Cognitive Function and Decision Making in College Students

Abstract

Adequate amount of sleep is important for proper functioning at a mental and a physical level for an individual as sleep plays a crucial role in maintaining various cognitive functions such as decision making, memory, perception, etc. The research aimed on studying the complex relationship between sleep patterns and cognitive functioning and its effect on decision making amongst college students (18-24 years) and provides a deeper understanding on metacognitive and cognitive skills. The cognitive patterns (distractibility, forgetfulness, false triggering) and decision making styles (rational and intuitive) of college students are more vulnerable to such problems due to academic demands, irregular schedules and compromised sleep patterns. A study on 40 college students was conducted using various standardized psychometric tools. Results shows that there were no significant relationship between sleep and cognitive pattern. Sleep showed a negative correlation with intuitive thinking style and cognitive patterns and decision making styles were also negatively correlated with each other. Thus, sleep may not affect the overall functioning in young adults but the results may vary with age affecting the cognitive and decision making styles respectively .