Examination Of Sleep Quality And Quantity In ROTC Cadets

The Holistic Health and Fitness model was created for the United States military to examine the concepts of spiritual, mental, physical, sleep, and nutritional readiness in the military. However, there is little research on sleep in ROTC cadets. Research exists in the active military, but it is difficult to relate this to cadets who are also full-time students. Cadets train for about 2 hours daily, attend class, and participate in other activities, making sleep and recovery difficult. Studies have identified a strong, positive correlation between quality sleep to recovery and overall health. Examining sleep readiness in cadets can improve an individual’s sleep performance and provide opportunities for intervention within cadets as they prepare for the United States military. PURPOSE: To examine sleep quality and quantity among ROTC cadets. METHODS: Twenty-two collegiate ROTC cadets (age = 20 ± 4 years; males = 13, females = 9) completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) followed by wearing a fitness watch with sleep tracking for 3 consecutive days. Measures of central tendency were performed, and sex comparisons were made using one-way ANOVA with repeated measures. RESULTS: The PSQI global sleep score for all participants was 7.5 ± 3.0 (males = 6.8 ± 2.3, females = 8.4 ± 3.6). The PSQI identified that 86.4% (n = 19) of cadets had poor sleep, with 77.8% (n = 7/9) of female and 92.3% (n = 12/13) of male cadets reporting poor sleep. Sleep tracking identified the cadets slept on average 6.5 hours per night with a below average sleep score (Table 1). No significant differences were found across sex with PSQI global sleep scores (p = 0.221) or overall sleep score (p = 0.329). CONCLUSION: Regardless of sex, cadets self-reported and experienced poor sleep. Insufficient sleep time and quality can be reflected in their performance at training and drills. Sleep education and training schedule modifications should be considered to produce better sleep outcomes in ROTC cadets. Table 1 - Sleep tracking variables All Cadets Average 3 Days Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Sleep Time* (mins) 427.8 ± 84.3 447.0 ± 124.1 437.7 ± 113.5 398.5 ± 118.7 Actual Sleep** (mins) 394.6 ± 73.1 415.1 ± 110.8 402.2 ± 102.2 366.5 ± 104.8 Percent Sleep (%) 92.5 ± 2.7 93.2 ± 2.1 92.1 ± 3.3 92.3 ± 3.9 Sleep Continuity Score (1-5) 2.9 ± .84 3.1 ± 1.2 2.7 ± 0.9 2.9 ± 0.9 Sleep Interruptions (mins) 33.3 ± 17.1 31.9 ± 15.1 35.7 ± 20.3 32.2 ± 26.1 Sleep Score (0-100) 66.6 ± 7.8 67.5 ± 9.9 66.0 ± 12.0 66.3 ± 13.2