Sleep, Psychological Symptoms, and Executive Functioning Over the Pubertal Transition in Adolescent Girls

This study examines the relationship between sleep, mental health, and executive functioning (EF) across the female pubertal transition. Participants (N=49) assigned female at birth completed two lab visits, before and after menarche, to assess anxiety, depression, and EF. Participants wore an actigraph wristwatch to collect sleep data for 7 days. Results showed that participants had later bedtime post-menarche and no significant changes in psychological symptoms or EF. Sleep did not moderate the relationship between premenarchal mental health and post-menarcheal EF. These findings contrast with prior research, highlighting the need for further studies with larger, more diverse samples to better understand these processes.