O025 Boarding school students sleep better than day-student peers! The positive effects of bedtime routine and restricting technology use at night

INTRODUCTION: Boarding students face unique challenges when entering school including separation from family and adapting to a novel environment. A particular challenge is sleep. The aim of this study was to examine the sleep and psychological wellbeing of boarding student versus day-student peers. METHODS: 59 boarding students and 250 day-students (one Adelaide school Years 10-12) completed the School Sleep Habits Survey, Depression-Anxiety-Stress-Scale-21, and Flourishing Scale. Boarding students additionally completed the Utrecht Homesickness Scale and a further 13 participated in a focus group examining the experiences of sleeping in a boarding house. RESULTS: Boarding compared to day-students reported 40 minutes more sleep per school night (p < .001), with earlier sleep onset (p = .026) and later wake up (p = .008) times. No significant differences in psychological variables were observed between groups. For both groups, hierarchical regression revealed longer sleep predicted better psychological wellbeing. In boarding students, homesickness-loneliness and homesickness-ruminations predicted psychological wellbeing. Thematic analysis of boarding students’ focus group responses revealed that night-time routine, and restricting technology use at night facilitated sleep. CONCLUSION: Surprisingly boarding students reported better sleep than day-students—a finding attributable to boarding students having structured night-time routines and the boarding house restrictions on technology use at night. Nonetheless, in boarding students poor sleep and homesickness were predictive of worse psychological wellbeing. This study highlights the importance of strategies which promote sleep and minimise homesickness in boarding school students, but also the importance of routine and restricting technology at bedtime for adolescent sleep in general.