Pilot study of dynamic lighting and sleep consolidation among older adults in a Jordanian senior care facility

The growing population of older adults necessitate built environment strategies that support sleep and overall health. This pilot study investigates whether dynamic electric lighting (intensity and CCT programmed to resemble day-night cycles) improves sleep among residents of a Jordanian care facility. Utilizing a pre-post within-subject design at Darat Samir Shamma, eight participants (mean age = 71.5 years; range = 60-82) experienced standard light followed by a dynamic lighting system. Objective sleep parameters were recorded using the Withings Sleep Analyzer, and subjective measures were assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Geriatric Depression Scale. Dynamic lighting was associated with marked gains in sleep consolidation: sleep quality increased by + 43.4% points (p < 0.001), total sleep time by + 3 h 08 min (p < 0.001), and sleep efficiency by + 16.4% points (p < 0.001). Bedtime advanced by - 2 h 39 min (earlier; p = 0.001) and time in bed increased by + 2.26 h (p < 0.001). WASO decreased by - 1 h 12 min (p = 0.002), and awakenings by - 1.39/night (p = 0.033). Snoring duration declined by - 13.6 min (p < 0.001). PSQI total scores changes significantly, decreasing from 7.00 under standard lighting to 4.00 under dynamic lighting (p = 0.017), reflecting better perceived sleep quality. No significant changes were observed in physiological markers or depressive symptoms. These findings support the potential of dynamic lighting as a non-pharmacological approach for enhancing sleep in institutional care settings. This research contributes context-specific insights from Jordan, where static electric lighting are common and related studies remain limited. Given the small sample size and pilot nature, larger-scale studies are recommended to confirm these preliminary results.