Perfect enough to sleep? Perfectionism and actigraphy-determined markers of insomnia

Background

Research has found that insomnia symptoms and severity are associated with higher levels of perfectionism and specific aspects of perfectionism. However, it remains unknown whether this relationship exists only with the perception of poor sleep or whether the same relationship can be found with objective sleep measures.

Research Questions / Hypotheses

1. Explore the relationship between perfectionism and insomnia using objective sleep parameters obtained from actigraphy.

2. Investigate the association between facets of multidimensional perfectionism and sleep disturbances.

3. Explore pathways whereby perfectionism may influence sleep through anxiety, stress, depression and sleep-related cognitions.

Participants

150 participants signed up for this pre-screening survey. Exclusion criteria: 1. Current diagnosis of psychosis, bipolar affective disorder, substance use disorder (including alcohol use disorder), central nervous system disorder, prior head injury and shift work. 2. Medication use (including sedatives, hypnotics and antidepressants) that may affect sleep may be permitted to participate if usage pattern is unstable.

Methods

All questionnaires were completed online via Qualtrics.

Results

The REP survey is used as a pre-screening survey to find potential participants to participate in the two-week actigraphy study. Some eligible participants will be invited to proceed with the next phase of the study via email.

Implications

This project aims to contribute to the understanding of the relationship between perfectionism and sleep. Perfectionism may be a factor in determining the success of cognitive-behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and incorporating perfectionism in CBT-I may benefit insomniacs who are highly perfectionistic. Results are planned for journal publication.