The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study is to examine parental perceptions of adolescent sleep hygiene in Long Island High School District; a suburban mid-sized district of 6, 515 students in a predominantly high socio-economic community. Sleep hygiene is defined as the regular, healthy habits and practices in order to obtain restorative, healthy sleep. Participants of the study included parents of different ethnic backgrounds, socio-economic backgrounds, gender, and marital status from both Richmond High School East and Richmond High School West.
A student’s well-being relies on purposeful, healthy sleep. Obtaining and promoting healthy sleep is both a challenge and a priority for educators as wellness is the most important foundation on which to build a successful school experience. Lack of healthy sleep has severe consequences on development and has been shown to increase risks of psychiatric diseases. The Perfect Storm Theory has become relevant in the field of student sleep and it claims that loss of sleep throughout adolescence arises from a convergence of biological, psychological, and socio-cultural influences (Carskadon, 2014).
Parental perceptions of their own adolescent’s sleep hygiene is an important aspect of wellness in their child. Sleep is an important part of memory formation; therefore, insufficient sleep can jeopardizing learning and performance. Understanding these perceptions will uncover the extent of parental knowledge of their own child’s sleep hygiene and the obstacles or aids to their child’s healthy sleep
