Comparison Of Sleep Characteristics And Emotional Symptoms Among College Students With Different Chronotype:A Cross-sectional Study

ObjectivesThis study aimed to investigate the chronotypes and their relationship with sleep pattern,sleep disturbance and emotional symptoms among college students.MethodsStudents from a university in Guangdong,China,were recruited through a cross-sectional online survey.Data were collected by self-reported questionnaires,including socio-demographics,lifestyles and health conditions,sleep patterns on weekdays and weekends,the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire-5(MEQ-5),the Insomnia Severity Index(ISI),the Epworth Sleepiness Scale(ESS),the Beck Depression Inventory-13(BDI),and the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale(SAS).Multivariate Logistic regression were performed to examine the associations of chronotypes with sleep compensation,sleep disturbances,and emotional symptoms among college students.P<0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.ResultsA total of 1607 questionnaires were received,among which 1569(97.6%)were valid for further analysis.The average age of participants was 19.86±1.16[15-27]years.The proportions of morning types(M-types),intermediate types(I-types),and evening types(E-types)were 14.9%,71.5%,and 13.6%,respectively.The regression analysis revealed that E-types were positively associated with long sleep compensation on weekends(adjusted OR 2.443,95%CI 1.740-3.429)compared with I-types,while M-types were opposite(adjusted OR 0.623,95%CI 0.392-0.990).E-types were also positively correlated with insomnia symptoms(adjusted OR 2.000,95%CI 1.428-2.801),depressive symptoms(adjusted OR 2.068,95%CI 1.496-2.858),and anxiety symptoms(adjusted OR 2.188,95%CI 1.387-3.451).However,no significant association was found between chronotypes and excessive daytime sleepiness.ConclusionOur study found that E-types were associated with long sleep compensation on weekends and insomnia,depression,and anxiety symptoms.Our findings emphasized the importance of early recognition and intervention of E-types and their accompanied sleep problems and mental distress.